Barcelona Heads to Basel Without Pedri and Gavi

Barcelona is heading to Basel, Switzerland, in preparation for a friendly match against Basel on Sunday evening, the last test for the team before the Joan Gamper Trophy and the start of the official season. The match will take place at St. Jakob-Park.

Barcelona's clash with Basel comes as the final stage of their preparations for the new season, following a series of friendly matches, including a game against Birmingham City and participation in the tri-nation tournament in Udine.

In recent days, the return of international players who delayed joining the preparation period due to their participation in the World Cup has been completed. A large number of them participated in group training, including Lamine Yamal, Dani Olmo, Joan Garcia, Eric Garcia, Pau Cubarsi, and Jules Koundé. Koundé returned to training on August 11 after finishing his holiday and participating in the World Cup.

However, Pedri and Gavi will not travel to Basel. Pedri is continuing to work on a gradual individual program after returning to training. He was seen back on the pitch during the last session before the trip, but the coaching staff does not want to rush his return to matches.

Gavi has participated in the training program with the group over the past few days, but his name did not appear on the list of travelers to Switzerland, according to Mundo Deportivo.

Flick will also miss the services of Frenkie de Jong due to injury, in addition to Swedish winger Rony Bardghji, who suffered a tear in the anterior cruciate ligament of his right knee and underwent successful surgery on August 12.

Barcelona has announced that Pedri suffered an injury during the pre-season, which will keep him out of the team for a long time. Meanwhile, Frenkie de Jong is continuing his rehabilitation program before returning to the pitch.

To compensate for the absences, Flick has called upon several players from Barcelona Athletic and the youth team, including Eider Alir, Álvaro Cortés, Jodi Pesquer, Brian Farinas, Ibrahima Tonkara, Orian Gorin, Hamza Abdel Karim, and Xavi Esparat.

These young players have already participated in first team training over the past few days, as Flick needs to expand his roster during the preparation period, especially with the delayed return of some internationals and the presence of injuries and open transfer files.

Several players are absent from the trip as they await clarity on their futures before the transfer window closes, including Marc Casado, Héctor Fort, Tomi Márquez, Geoffrey Torents, Giyi Fernández, and Toni Fernández, according to the report.

This comes as the club works to finalize several matters related to departures, with goalkeeper Aaron Jakubowski being one of the notable absentees from Basel's trip, as he nears the completion of his transfer to Almeria. Therefore, Eder Alir has been called up to replace him.

The match against Basel will serve as almost the final test before the official competitions kick off, as Barcelona will then play the Joan Gamper Trophy against Egyptian side Al Ahly on Wednesday, before starting their title defense in La Liga away against Elche the following Sunday.

Barcelona is getting an extra week of preparation compared to other teams, thanks to several of its players participating in the later stages of the World Cup. This has led the coaching staff, led by Flick, to manage the return of the players gradually and avoid taking risks with them too early.