Barcelona’s much-needed Champions League victory on Wednesday night was significantly tainted by Pedri suffering another hamstring injury that manager Hansi Flick confirmed will sideline him for weeks.
As Barcelona tried to engineer a match winner an hour into the contest against Slavia Prague, Pedri collapsed on the ground grimacing in pain and grabbing his right hamstring. The midfield maestro gingerly exited the pitch on his own power and Barcelona eventually found a way to clinch a 4–2 win.
Despite the good result, attention quickly turned to Pedri’s fitness status following the game. Flick, who had a noticeable reaction when Pedri was forced to leave the pitch, delivered an update on the player’s status, one that will further raise the alarms in Catalonia.
“It happens. I don’t know exactly now how long does it take [Pedri’s recovery],” Flick said after the match. “We have to wait until tomorrow and then we’ll see, we’ll know more, but it’s no good news.”
Flick went on to praise Dani Olmo—who scored the game-winning goal after replacing Pedri—and the rest of his substitutes on Wednesday for stepping up and contributing significantly to the win. Still, the fear of Pedri’s potentially lengthy absence will surely keep the German boss up at night.
Hamstring injuries have haunted Pedri throughout his career. Just this season alone, he’s already missed seven games between Barcelona and Spain due to a similar injury suffered back in late October that sidelined him for over a month. He also missed Barça’s final game of 2025 with a muscular overload.
The 23-year-old is almost guaranteed to miss Barcelona’s final match of the Champions League league phase on Jan. 28. If that wasn’t enough bad news, his midfield partner in crime will also miss the all-important clash vs. Copengahen.
Frenkie de Jong Suspended For League Phase Finale
Not only will Pedri likely to be in the treatment room, but Frenkie de Jong will also miss Barcelona’s league phase finale after getting booked late in the game vs. Slavia Prague, earning a one match suspension for yellow card accumulation.
The Dutchman was sensational in the second half of Wednesday’s victory, but an unnecessary challenge will force Barcelona to take the pitch vs. Club Brugge—needing a lopsided win to qualify among the top eight—without Flick’s preferred midfield pairing.
The German boss will be obligated to field a makeshift midfield pivot, with Eric García and Marc Bernal becoming the most likely partnership. Marc Casadó is also an alternative to start, as well as Dani Olmo, who could operate deeper in midfield with Fermín López in the No. 10 role.
Regardless of how Flick opts to replace his starting midfielders, De Jong created an unnecessary headache that only worsened the already massive issue of Pedri’s injury.
READ THE LATEST BARCELONA NEWS, TRANSFER RUMORS AND MORE
- Pedri Injury: Barcelona Learn ’Initial Diagnosis’ for Star Player
- Supercomputer Predicts Final 2025–26 Champions League Table With One Matchday Left
- The Longest Champions League Winning Runs—Ranked
- Transfer Rumors: Man Utd’s €75 Million Forward Target; Real Madrid Want Alexander-Arnold Sale
This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘No Good News’—Hansi Flick Delivers Disastrous Update on Pedri Injury.
