Betis has confirmed that Junior Firpo will be the only player who will not be available for the next clash against FC Barcelona, which will be held at La Cartuja this Saturday. The absence is due to an injury that has forced the midfielder to withdraw from the final training session on Friday, leaving the team with an almost complete squad for the Champions League group stage duel.
Chilean coach Manuel Pellegrini, who led the team in the defeat against FC Porto on Wednesday, has a wide variety of options at his disposal to decide the starting eleven. Among the players who could appear in the lineup are defenders Héctor Bellerín and Diego Llorente, as well as midfielders Facundo Bernal and Pablo Fornals. Furthermore, the coach is considering the possibility of including Cucho Hernández, who has been one of the most notable offensive alternatives in recent games, and Dani Ceballos, who could play his first starting game against the Blaugranas.
In the last training session, Aitor Ruibal was the positive figure when he joined the session along with the rest of the group, which indicates that the signing continues to advance in his adaptation and fine-tuning process at the club. The rest of the squad appeared fit and injury-free, allowing Pellegrini to experiment with different tactical schemes before the match.
Betis seeks to establish itself as a formidable rival in the group stage and take advantage of the advantage of playing at home. The coach has indicated that the objective is to “be strong at home” and that the final preparation will focus on fine-tuning the team's cohesion and defining the strategy that allows them to overcome the Catalans. With the absence of Junior Firpo, the midfielder will have to recover before the team faces a rival of Barça's stature, which adds an additional challenge to the squad's planning.