Barcelona confirm defender’s return from injury ahead of crucial Real Sociedad fixture – Football España

Less than 24 hours after their disappointing Copa del Rey draw against Atletico Madrid, Barcelona have received some much-needed good news in the form of a return from injury for Andreas Christensen.

Christensen, who has been linked with a summer move over the last few months, has not played since the opening day of the 2024-25 season, when he appeared as a substitute against Valencia. A few days after that match, he underwent surgery to correct a problematic Achilles tendon injury, and this ended up with him out of action for five months.

He returned to Barcelona’s matchday squad in January, but failed to make an appearance against Getafe, Benfica or Valencia. Then, he suffered another injury setback that has seen him out for the last four weeks, although he has now recovered from this.

On Wednesday, Barcelona confirmed that Christensen has received the medical green light from club officials, as per MD. As such, he is now set to be available for this weekend’s showdown La Liga clash against Real Sociedad at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys.

Christensen’s return means that Barcelona now only have two injured players, those being Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, who is nearing a return, and Marc Bernal, who will not play again his season after suffering a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament during a match against Rayo Vallecano back in August. It also means that Hansi Flick is back to his full quota of central defenders, with Pau Cubarsi, Inigo Martinez, Ronald Araujo and Eric Garcia also at the disposal of the German head coach.

Christensen has been a very impressive performer during his time at Barcelona, and it will be interesting to see how he is utilised by Flick during the final months of the season. He can be used in midfield if required, as was the case with Xavi Hernandez during the 2023-24 campaign.