Barcelona's France defender Jules Kounde has been slow to recover, Spanish newspaper As reported. Kounde has made Barcelona's lack of strength even worse as they have lost consecutive games following the Champions League Round 3 match against PSG and El Clasico against Real Madrid. On the 28th local time, he felt severe pain in his left ankle while heading to training on Wednesday, and as he remained in the gym the next day to make adjustments, it is said that his chances of playing in the match against Alaves at the Camp Nou on the 31st are extremely low.
Also absent are right backs (SB): Spain national team defender Eric Garcia and U-21 national team defender Xavi Espar. Espar is expected to be out for seven weeks after being substituted with injury in El Clasico, and Garcia is also not yet fit to play. Therefore, only Portugal national team defender Joao Cancelo will be available as right-back against Alaves. Us reports that Cancelo will play at right-back against Alaves, while Spain national team defender Alejandro Balde will make his first appearance as left-back.
After losing consecutive games and ending their 11-game winning streak, Barcelona will be aiming for their first win in three games against Alaves, but the absence of their right-back is a major issue. Furthermore, with a busy schedule continuing with the Champions League match against Aston Villa on November 3rd and Atlético Madrid on the 4th, managing the workload of the players will be important. It is expected that the early return of injured players, including Kunde, will be essential for the team.
Under these circumstances, Barcelona were limited in their options for hiring a right-back, and they decided to hire Cancelo. It is unclear when Kounde will be back in the upcoming games, but the team will wait for the injured player to recover and focus on making tactical adjustments for the remaining games. Cancelo's performance in the next game against Alaves and Kounde's return will have a big impact on Barcelona's future results.