Rafinha and Juan Garcia have returned to Barcelona's group training sessions after being absent for two months, in preparation for the match against Athletic Bilbao in the reopening of Spotify Camp Nou stadium, according to the Spanish newspaper "Mundo Deportivo".

The newspaper explained that the players completed two training sessions normally on Tuesday and Wednesday, which puts them among Hans Flick's options for the upcoming match.

The newspaper sees that the absence of the players was costly for the team since the win at Carlos Tartiere stadium in mid-September, as Barcelona was especially affected by Rafinha's absence in high pressing and ball recovery, due to his great physical value and his role within the attacking structure.

With the Brazilian winger injured, Flick had to change the playing system and involve Marcus Rashford in the winger position, which caused the team to lose some of its attacking fluency despite the great scoring ability of the English star.

The newspaper added that Juan Garcia's absence was also influential, as Szczesny was unable to perform at the same level shown by the young goalkeeper, despite his saves in difficult situations amid a defensive system whose performance has declined over the past weeks.

Mundo Deportivo pointed out that Garcia had managed to keep three clean sheets before his injury, something Szczesny has not achieved.

The newspaper confirms that the return of Rafinha and Juan Garcia represents a new starting point for Hans Flick's team in the upcoming phase, especially with the urgent need to restore defensive and offensive balance before the critical period of the season.