Marc Casado Injury: 5 Options to Replace the Barcelona Midfielder | OneFootball

Barcelona will reportedly be without Marc Casado for the rest of the season after suffering a right knee injury against Atletico Madrid, according to ESPN.

Hansi Flick must navigate Casado's injury as they chase La Liga glory and pursue a deep run in the Champions League. They're favored to advance past Borussia Dortmund, but the road becomes more challenging as potential showdowns with Bayern Munich, Inter Milan, Real Madrid, PSG and Arsenal loom later in the competition.

Flick has depth to rely on, but he must get his midfield correct to enable Pedri to dominate and control games as he can.

Here are five options to replace Casado in the Barcelona lineup.

Frenkie de Jong

Frenkie de Jong is the most likely option to receive the bulk of the minutes. / IMAGO/AFLOSPORT

Frenkie de Jong remains the top option as the starter to replace Casado's minutes. De Jong remains a pivotal player in Flick's plans for the rest of the season. After missing the first eight La Liga games because of an ankle injury, he's appeared in 15 games. He missed the Atletico Madrid game because of illness, but he's been a key participant in the Champions League.

Gavi

Gavi returned from an ACL injury this season. / IMAGO/Pressinphoto

Gavi hasn't featured much as a starter this season since recovering from an ACL injury. With Casado going down, he could be called upon domestically as the season starts to wrap up. He's only provided one assist in La Liga while failing to find the back of the net outside of the Spanish Super Cup and Copa del Rey. Though, Gavi is not naturally a defensive minded midfielder which could push Flick to try other options instead.

Fermin Lopez

Could Fermín López see his minutes rise even more given Marc Casado's injury? / IMAGO/Pressinphot

Another midfielder who's seen his minutes rise under Flick is Fermin Lopez, though he falls into the same category as Gavi. Flick could, in the instance of using either Gavi or Fermin, deploy Dani Olmo a bit deeper in midfield next to Pedri allowing the other two players to come into the side. In the end, Flick might prefer a more defensive option. He's played as a central midfielder, attacking midfielder and winger under Flick so far.

The La Masia product has four goals and four assists this season across the Champions League and La Liga.

Eric Garcia

Eric García could become a makeshift midfielder for Flick. / IMAGO/Jose Breton

Naturally a center back, Eric Garcia could be called up on partner Pedri in Flick's 4-2-3-1 formation. He's played as a defensive midfielder 10 times across the Champions League and La Liga this season compared to his 12 appearances as a defender across the back line. Given his natural defensive traits, the former Manchester City player could be the preferred option as it'll give Pedri more freedom to join the attack and dictate games.

Pablo Torre

Pablo Torre could see more minutes as more of a utility player. / IMAGO/NurPhoto

The final option, Pablo Torre, has made just eight appearance in La Liga and one in Europe. Again, similar to Fermin Lopez and Gavi as options, Torre is more of an attacking player. He could be used more as a late substitute in matches, or as an option off the bench to provide more attacking threat from midfield late in games if Barcelona is chasing a result.

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