Brazilian forward Raphinha faces a 22,000-kilometre round trip by plane to play two friendlies for Brazil against Japan and Singapore in November.
Carlo Ancelotti offered no reprieve. The coach called up Raphinha for both matches despite the question marks over their value, according to the Catalan newspaper "Sport", which reckoned the Italian had "punished Barcelona once again".
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Brazil head to the city of Singapore to face Japan on Saturday 14 November, before hosting Singapore, 149th of 211 national teams in the latest FIFA ranking, on Tuesday 17 November.
For Barcelona's number 11, that means another gruelling slog through the air, roughly 22,000 kilometres there and back.
These new commitments arrive with Raphinha still short of his best, following the muscle injury he picked up during the previous international break with his country.
He was hurt on 29 September in the Australian city of Brisbane, forced off at half-time in the friendly against Australia. The injury sent him back to Barcelona early, while Brazil stayed on to prepare for a third friendly against India in Kolkata.
Worrying precedents
Hansi Flick, Barcelona and the Catalan fans have every reason to fret over this latest call-up, which falls within the final international breaks of 2026. The history is alarming. Raphinha has been injured before while with Brazil, and the damage to the Blaugrana was significant.
Last March still stings in Flick's memory. Raphinha was injured in Boston during a friendly against France, a game of little importance to Brazil.
That blow kept him out for Barcelona for five weeks. He missed the knockout ties in which the team crashed out of the Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League, both against Diego Simeone's Atlético Madrid. The Brazilian then suffered a setback during the 2026 World Cup and sat out his country's exit against Erling Haaland's Norway.