Barcelona Players Depart for International Duty Amidst Concerns

Hansi Flick feels it in the pit of his stomach every time a FIFA date comes around.

“I feel anxious when the players leave, but I trust the national team coaches and I try to stay positive,” the Barcelona coach admitted a few days ago. The international break has now begun, and that anxiety has turned into a long list of boarding passes and potential problems.

Seventeen tickets out of Barcelona

According to Marca, 17 Barcelona players have left to join up with their national teams during this window. It was supposed to be 18, but Andreas Christensen’s left thigh injury has kept him in Barcelona and out of the Denmark squad.

There is no sense of panic inside the club. But there is tension. A lot of it.

The squad is in excellent physical shape. That is precisely why these games, and the long-haul flights that come with some of them, feel like a gamble. One bad landing, one heavy tackle, one overloaded schedule, and weeks of careful work can unravel.

Barcelona know this too well. Raphinha and others have already paid that price in previous breaks.

Spain-heavy, but not only Spain

Seven Barcelona players have joined Luis de la Fuente’s Spain: Cubarsí, Eric García, Rodri, Pedri, Fermín, Olmo and Lamine Yamal. A strong Barça block, spread across the spine of the team.

In their clash with Croatia, they will run into Livaković, another player away on international duty and another reminder of how stretched Europe’s elite squads have become.

The conveyor belt continues at youth level. Xavi Espart and Marc Bernal have stepped up to Spain’s under-21 side, who face three qualifying games for Euro 2027 against Finland, San Marino and Romania. Three matches in a short window, three more chances for fatigue to creep in.

And the list goes on.

• Karim Adeyemi has been recalled by Germany for games against Serbia and Greece.
• Raphinha flies out with Brazil.
• João Cancelo joins Portugal.
• Gordon reports for England.
• Jules Koundé for France.
• Hamza Abdelkarim for Egypt.
• Bisseck links up with Belgium’s under-21s.

Every name on that list is another heartbeat skipped in the Barcelona offices.

Raphinha, the biggest worry

One case stands above the rest.

Raphinha is currently the most in-form player in the squad, with 14 goals in eight matches. He is the sharpest weapon Flick has, and the one Barcelona can least afford to lose. Yet he faces a demanding international window that includes long-distance travel and heavy minutes.

The Brazilian has returned injured from previous call-ups. That history hangs over this break like a cloud.

The concern is not limited to the matches themselves. The flights across the Atlantic, the time zones, the broken sleep – they all add up. Fatigue can be as dangerous as a reckless tackle.

Raphinha is not alone in this pattern. Lamine Yamal, Gavi and Frenkie de Jong have also come back from international duty injured on several occasions. Each time, Barcelona have been left to pick up the pieces.

The most recent alarm with Raphinha came at the last World Cup, when he suffered pain in the tendons of his right knee. A few months earlier, during a friendly between Brazil and France in the United States, he was injured in the same area, dropped from the squad and sent straight back to Barcelona. He missed five weeks.

Last season, a series of scattered injuries disrupted his rhythm and availability. Flick and the club are desperate to avoid a repeat now that he has finally hit top gear.

Laporta’s warning shot

The unease has reached the very top of the club.

At Saturday’s general assembly, president Joan Laporta did not hide his frustration with this international window – both its timing and the volume of games his players are forced to contest.

“This break affects the rhythm of our preparations. It harms us greatly. We have to keep fighting and find the right balance. There are many competitions, the Conference League and the Nations League ... the schedule is extremely crowded,” Laporta said.

It was more than a complaint. It sounded like a warning to the international football authorities he now wants to speak with.

Barcelona have sent 17 players around the world. When the break ends, Flick will count them back in, one by one, and hope the damage is not measured in weeks on the treatment table.