Barcelona lose Rodri for crucial La Liga meeting with Atletico Madrid

Barcelona have confirmed that Rodri will miss Sunday’s La Liga match against Atletico de Madrid after medical tests revealed a minor muscle injury in his right hamstring.

The club announced on its official account on X that Rodri underwent examinations after reporting muscular discomfort during Tuesday’s Champions League match against Aston Villa.

The tests showed a slight injury to the hamstring in his right thigh. Barcelona said Rodri would be unavailable for the meeting with Atletico, with the length of his absence to be determined by how his condition develops in the coming period.

Rodri felt the problem during the match and was replaced at half-time by Marc Bernal. Hans Flick’s side led 1-0 at the interval before completing a convincing victory at home.

Lamine Yamal opened the scoring in the seventh minute, while Raphinha added Barcelona’s second and third goals in the 52nd and 64th minutes respectively. The 3-0 win came in the fourth round of the league phase of the Champions League.

The result lifted Barcelona to nine points in their European campaign and handed Aston Villa their first defeat of the league phase, following a perfect start that had brought them three successive victories.

Barcelona and Atletico contest La Liga leadership

Rodri’s absence comes at a difficult stage for Barcelona, who are preparing for a decisive clash with Atletico at the Metropolitano on Sunday, 08 November 2026.

The fixture carries added significance because the two teams are competing directly for first place in La Liga. Barcelona currently lead the standings with 30 points, while Atletico are second, two points behind.

That leaves Atletico with the opportunity to move to the top of the table by winning on home ground. Barcelona, meanwhile, can strengthen their position at the summit and increase the gap over one of their leading challengers.

Rodri’s injury became apparent after he had started the Champions League encounter with Aston Villa, but the decision to withdraw him at half-time means he will not be involved in the weekend fixture. Barcelona will now monitor his recovery before determining when he can return.

The club’s statement did not give a specific timescale for his absence, saying only that it would depend on his progress over the next few days.