La Blaugrana face Diego Simeone’s side in Copa del Rey semifinals
Barcelona forward Raphinha has missed the club’s last two games due to an injury in his thigh.
The club first reported on 2 February that the Brazilian had suffered an overload in the muscle of his right thigh, ruling him out of the Copa del Rey quarter-final second leg game against Albacete the following day.
Raphinha missed that game and then subsequently also missed the weekend’s game against Mallorca, which Barcelona won 3-0. The initial communication was that he was expected to spend just about a week on the sidelines, putting him in contention for the next game.
Barcelona face Atletico Madrid on Thursday in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals. Raphinha is expected to return to training on Tuesday and then travel to the capital with the team.
But the 29-year-old has also struggled with fitness this season, missing 12 games already for the club, meaning that the coaching and medical staff will be wary of rushing him back to avoid any further setbacks.
On Monday, Raphinha said there was “a chance” he could play against Atletico.
“I am better, but not at 100%,” said Raphinha. “We are taking it day by day. There are options to make it on Thursday, but I still do not know. If I am well, I will play, but we have to wait.”
🗣️Habla Raphinha sobre su lesión: “hay opciones de llegar el jueves contra el Atlético, aún no lo sé”
📹@scapde_45 pic.twitter.com/nYNgXS2Ijw
— Diario SPORT (@sport) February 9, 2026
Manager Hansi Flick said the decision for the forward to play would be left to him and the medical staff.
“We have to wait, day by day,” Flick said last weekend. “The moment he feels he’s able to train with us and gets the green light from the medical staff, he’ll do it. We have to proceed step by step and calmly.”
