Following FC Barcelona’s surprising loss to Athletic Bilbao on the opening day of the La Liga season, Barca finds itself in desperate need to improve its fortunes against Real Betis come Sunday night.
While Real Betis have proven to be worthy opponents in the past, especially after defeating the Blaugranes 4-3 in the corresponding fixture last season, the Catalan giants now have an even steeper mountain to climb due to the injuries afflicted on striker Luis Suarez and winger Ousmane Dembele.
News of Suarez’s injury comes as no surprise, as the Uruguayan international was substituted after picking up a calf injury during the first half of the fixture against Athletic Bilbao. Ousmane Dembele’s injury, on the other hand, was far more startling, with confirmation of his injury being made on the FC Barcelona’s Twitter account. Dembele’s hamstring injury will see him remain on the sidelines for a minimum of five weeks.
These injuries have come at a particularly precarious time for Barca, as club captain Lionel Messi is recovering from a calf injury due to which he was unavailable for the league opener. This means extra pressure being placed on new signing Antoine Griezmann, who will likely be required to take the reigns as striker in the next match.
