Madrid (Spain), Oct. 17 (IANS) FC Barcelona coach Hansi Flick preferred not to talk about injury problems as his side prepares to face Girona in the La Liga on Saturday.

Barcelona dropped to second in the La Liga table before the international break after a 4-1 defeat to Sevilla, while the past days have seen Flick lose the likes of Robert Lewandowski, Ferran Torres, and Dani Olmo due to injury, while Pedri had a heavy workload with Spain’s national team.

“I can’t change things, and we have to find solutions,” Flick said in his pre-game press conference on Friday, adding that while Fermin Lopez and Lamine Yamal are available, “they can’t play 90 minutes.”

He discussed midfielder Frenkie de Jong, who has just signed a new contract, and Pedri. “Frenkie has had days off, Pedri less so. We have to take care of Pedri,” he said, noting that the pair represented their countries “because they’re among the best in the world.”

The coach reacted angrily to a rumour that he played Yamal in the recent Champions League defeat to Paris Saint-Germain due to a request from the club when the youngster wasn’t fully fit.

“This is garbage, and I’d like to know where the story comes from. They would never ask us to do this. It’s not true, and if anyone says it, they’re lying,” insisted Flick, who also said that both he and the players are unhappy with plans to play the La Liga game against Villarreal in Miami the weekend before Christmas.

“It’s La Liga that has to decide and we have to accept it,” he concluded.

In other matches on Saturday, Sevilla will meet Mallorca, Villarreal will take on Real Betis, while Atletico Madrid will face Osasuna in another match.

On Sunday, Eiche will play Athletic Bilbao, Celta Vigo meet Real Sociedad, Levante face Rayo Vallecano, while Getafe play Real Madrid.

–IANS

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