Barcelona face Sevilla test with Juan Garcia injury raising fears of last season’s collapse

Barcelona goalkeeper Juan Garcia is a doubt for Saturday’s La Liga meeting with Sevilla after being substituted at half-time in the win over Racing Santander.

Manager Hansi Flick surprised supporters by replacing Garcia at the interval, bringing on experienced Poland international Wojciech Szczesny for the first time this season.

Reports indicate Garcia suffered a minor ankle injury at the end of the first half. The goalkeeper slipped on the wet artificial surface while attempting to retrieve a ball that had gone out of play, causing an awkward movement and a slight twist.

Although the injury is not considered serious, Garcia’s absence from Barcelona’s trip to Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan has not been ruled out. The match, scheduled for Saturday, will be played as part of the seventh round of La Liga.

A potential return for Szczesny would revive uncomfortable memories for Barcelona supporters, who will not want to see last season’s events repeated.

Barcelona had made an excellent start to the campaign, winning five of their first six matches and drawing 1-1 with Rayo Vallecano. Garcia was then injured during the game against Real Oviedo, leaving the club reliant on Szczesny.

The Polish goalkeeper passed his first test after Garcia’s injury, helping Barcelona secure a 2-1 victory over Real Sociedad at Spotify Camp Nou.

However, the following match brought a heavy setback as Barcelona lost 4-1 to Sevilla at Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in the eighth round of the season.

That match, played in October last year, saw Szczesny concede four goals. Alexis Sanchez scored from the penalty spot, while Isaac Romero Bernal, Jose Angel Carmona and Akor Adams were also on target. Marcus Rashford scored Barcelona’s consolation goal.

Barcelona will return to the same stadium to face the same opponents in a few days, with Szczesny potentially set to start once again.

His possible return also comes after another costly mistake in the Racing Santander match. After coming on as a substitute, Szczesny was slow in possession close to his own goal, allowing Morocco’s Yasser Al-Zabiri to take advantage and score the visitors’ second goal.

Barcelona will nevertheless arrive in Seville in outstanding form. They have won all seven of their matches in all competitions this season, including six in La Liga and one in the UEFA Champions League.

They have also scored 33 goals across those games, averaging almost five goals per match.

Barcelona’s challenge will be to maintain that attacking momentum at Sevilla while managing the uncertainty surrounding Garcia’s fitness and Szczesny’s possible return to goal.