Ousmane Dembele was forced off due to injury in Barcelona’s 1-0 win over Girona on Saturday in what is a big blow to the Catalan giants.
Xavi offered a brief update on his attacker after the match after losing the Frenchman to what looked to be a muscular problem.
“Dembélé? I think there is a significant injury,” he said.
“It’s a shame, because he is one of the most decisive footballers for us, the most differential.
“We will see the tests, but he has noticed something. We hope it’s as little as possible, but he has noticed a quadriceps injury.”
Barcelona then confirmed the nature of his injury but didn’t offer an indication of how long he will be out for.
LATEST NEWS | Tests carried out this evening on Ousmane Dembélé have shown that he has a rectus femoris injury in his left thigh. He is out and his recovery will determine his availability. pic.twitter.com/hG8WskAla3
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) January 28, 2023
The good news, if there is any, is that Dembele was able to walk off the pitch and then went to the bench, rather than going straight to the dressing room for treatment.
However, Dembele was spotted limping after the match.
It’s now being reported that Dembele will miss the next 3-4 weeks which would rule out him out of La Liga games against Real Betis, Villarreal and Sevilla.
Dembele would also be expected to sit out the first leg of the Europa League play-off against Manchester United at the Camp Nou on February 16 and the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-finals.
