Hamza Abdelkarim joins Barcelona first-team training as Flick builds squad for Elche

Barcelona have resumed preparations for the new season with Hamza Abdelkarim and Alvaro Cortes the only Barcelona Atletic players involved in Monday’s first-team session under manager Hansi Flick.

The Catalan club begin their league campaign on 23 August, when they face Elche in their opening fixture.

Flick’s players returned to work after being given Sunday off following the three-team friendly tournament held in Udine on Saturday. The Monday morning session included only a limited number of players from Barcelona’s reserve side, with Abdelkarim and Cortes training alongside the senior squad.

Their involvement should not be interpreted as a decision by Flick to leave out the rest of the Barcelona Atletic players. Monday’s selection does not mean the manager intends to rely exclusively on Cortes and Abdelkarim, nor does it indicate that other reserve-team players will not be invited to future sessions.

The group of young players was completed by the presence of goalkeepers Yaakobishvili and Iker Rodriguez. Juan Garcia, Eric Garcia and Gordon had already returned to training on Sunday and continued their work with the squad on Monday.

Barcelona’s remaining international players are expected to return by Wednesday at the latest. Once they are back, Flick will have the full squad available to him, although the club is still waiting for further arrivals and departures.

The session therefore provided a snapshot of the preparations rather than a definitive indication of Barcelona’s plans for the reserve players. Abdelkarim and Cortes were given the opportunity to work with the first team, while the wider group of young players remains involved in the club’s preparations.

Flick’s focus is now on bringing together his complete squad before the league opener against Elche. The return of the international players by Wednesday should give him a full group to assess as Barcelona continue their build-up to the new campaign.