Ousmane Dembele thought that he had shaken off his injury troubles at Barcelona, but the France international forward is back on the sidelines with another hamstring problem.
The 24-year-old winger only made his latest return to action for the Blaugrana in their 1-0 Champions League win over Dynamo Kyiv.
He was handed 25 minutes off the bench in that contest and will see his search for full match fitness brought to an abrupt halt there as he prepares to head back to the treatment room.
What has been said?
Delivering a fitness update on the club’s official website, Barca have said: “The first team player Sergino Dest has lower back pain. He is unavailable for selection and his recovery will dictate his return.
“The first team player Ousmane Dembele has a strain in the semimembranosus muscle of his left hamstring. He is unavailable for selection and his recovery will dictate his return.”
Next Match
How long will Dembele be out for?
For now, Barcelona are merely ruling Dembele out of a La Liga meeting with Celta Vigo on Saturday.
Given that he is going to be forced to miss that fixture, it is highly unlikely that the World Cup winner will be called upon by France during the November international break.
That shutdown in domestic duties could work in Dembele’s favour, as he sets out on another road to recovery, but hamstring issues have been holding him back for a while now.
An untimely injury picked up at Euro 2020 forced the Barca winger to miss the remainder of that competition with his country and 14 games at club level.
Just one outing has been taken in since then, and it remains to be seen how many more will be sat out.
Barca will return to action after the international break in a derby date with Espanyol on November 20, before then facing Benfica in the Champions League and Villarreal in the Spanish top-flight.
