Just when Barcelona appeared to overcome the dreadful injury luck that compromised their start of the campaign, bad news reappeared as Pedri sustained his second significant injury of the term.
With the decisive portion of the season fast approaching, Barcelona will be forced to navigate a busy schedule that includes games across three different competitions without their midfield maestro.
Words don’t do justice to how crucial Pedri is for Hansi Flick’s system to fire on all cylinders. The 23-year-old’s fingerprints are all over Barcelona’s style; he’s the tempo-setter and quarterback of the team in possession, an underrated defender in the middle of the park and the brains behind the entire operation.
Simply put, Flick’s Barcelona can’t reach their full potential without Pedri on the pitch—as was evidenced when he missed time earlier in the term. Nevertheless, the defending Spanish champions must find solutions, because they’ll be without their No. 8 for some time.
When Will Pedri Return From Injury?
Pedri looked visibly concerned when he went to the ground tugging at his right hamstring an hour into Barcelona’s Champions League clash vs. Slavia Prague. Further medical evaluations then confirmed the midfielder is expected to miss one month of action.
Hamstring issues have notoriously hindered Pedri over the course of his young career. This season, he already missed five games with a left hamstring injury suffered during the first El Clásico of the term, and he was also sidelined for Barcelona’s final game of 2025 due to a similar muscular overload.
The recovery timeline stipulated by Barcelona could see Pedri return to the pitch towards the end of February. However, it wouldn’t be surprising if Flick and his staff are overly cautious handling Pedri’s return, given it’s vital he’s healthy and available for the decisive part of the campaign.
Which Barcelona Games Will Pedri Miss?
If Pedri does indeed miss only one month of action, then his return to the pitch could come in Barcelona’s home La Liga bout vs. Levante on Feb. 22. However, if the Catalans decide to be overly cautious, then Pedri’s return could be delayed until March 1, when they take on Villarreal.
It’s almost guaranteed that Pedri will miss at least six games, and that list could grow to nine depending of the results Barcelona achieve in the coming weeks. Pedri already sat out Barça’s 3–0 win vs. Real Oviedo and will remain sidelined when Barcelona host FC Copenhagen on Jan. 28, needing a lofty win to finish among the top eight of the Champions League league phase. If Barcelona fail to do so, then he’d miss at least the first leg of the knockout phase playoffs.
Best case scenario, Pedri will miss an additional three La Liga matches following Sunday’s bout against Real Oviedo. Fortunately for Barcelona, they’ll enter a comfortable slate of league fixtures, with an away visit to Elche on Jan. 31, followed up by a home clash with Mallorca on Feb. 7 and a short trip to face Girona on Feb. 15.
Pedri will also miss the Copa del Rey quarterfinal clash against Real Madrid slayers Albacete on Feb. 3. If Barcelona advance to the semifinal, then the midfielder is expected to miss the first leg of the tie.
The Barcelona Games Pedri Could Miss
| Date | Opponent | Competition |
|---|---|---|
| Jan. 25 | Real Oviedo (H) | La Liga |
| Jan. 28 | FC Copenhagen (H) | Champions League |
| Jan. 31 | Elche (A) | La Liga |
| Feb. 3 | Albacete (A) | Copa del Rey quarterfinal |
| Feb. 7 | Mallorca (H) | La Liga |
| Feb. 10–12* | TBD | Copa del Rey semifinal (first leg) |
| Feb. 15 | Girona (A) | La Liga |
| Feb. 17-18* | TBD | Champions League knockout phase playoff (first leg) |
| Feb. 22 | Levante (H) | La Liga |
*Dependent on Barcelona’s upcoming results
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as How Many Games Will Pedri Miss for Barcelona With Fresh Hamstring Injury?.
