Gündoğan Ends The Year On a Stitch-y Note
By Shree Desai
FC Barcelona midfielder İlkay Gündoğan ends the year on a stitch-y note. The injury came to light after the German's wife posted a pic on her Instagram story. In the picture, we can see the stitches received by the 33-year-old midfielder.
Marca reported that the accident occurred during a session at the Ciudad Deportiva gym. The German international's head was struck by one of the weights, and he was immediately moved to the hospital. The doctors put up two stitches on the wound.
As for his availability, the Cules can sigh a breath of relief as the minor blow won't be enough to keep
Gündoğan away from the game. He'll be there against Las Palmas and also against the teams that follow.
Barcelona haven't had the best of luck recently, as they've lost both Pedri and Gavi to injury. In such circumstances, losing another midfielder would've turned into a nightmare for the Catalan giants. Luckily, it wasn't a major accident.
Injury Crisis At The Catalan Capital
A total of five players are out due to injuries (at the time of writing this article). These include the likes of Marc-André ter Stegen, Iñigo Martínez, Marcos Alonso, Gavi and Pedri. All of them will be resting till at least the new year.
Martínez will be the first one to make a comeback. The Spaniard will return on the 1st of Jan 2024. The defender was out for since the start of December due to a hamstring injury and has missed four games in total. Next in line is ter Stegen who is predicted to be out till 14 February 2024.
The German goalkeeper's back surgery was a success, and he is currently in rehab. Marcos Alonso is also in for the long haul as they predict him to be out till March 2024. The former Chelsea defender is also out due to a back injury.
Gavi is out for the rest of the season, as he is meant to return by the end of June 2024. Overuse of his body for club and country resulted in a Cruciate Ligament Tear. Pedri, on the other hand, doesn't have a set date of return. The 21-year-old is suffering from muscular problems also after overuse.