Barcelona manager Hansi Flick offered a positive update on the status of midfielder Gavi and left the door open for Ronald Araujo to make his first start in over two months in Sunday’s La Liga match against Real Oviedo.
Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, Flick gave a very optimistic-sounding answer on the chances of Gavi making a comeback from knee surgery in the next few weeks, but stressed the need to bring him back slowly and only when he’s fully ready to return.
As for Araujo, Hansi didn’t
rule out that Ronald could make his first start since that infamous night at Stamford Bridge, and praised the Uruguayan’s contributions since returning from his mental health break.
“I see [Gavi] almost every day. He’s training and improving a lot. The most important thing for him is to stay calm and take it one step at a time. There’s no need to rush. He has a long career ahead of him, and there’s no need to hurry. If he comes back in February, we’ll be happy, but for me, the important thing is that he comes back healthy.
“We need to manage [Araujo’s] playing time. He’s doing very well so far. He’s an option to start, but we have to see. We’ll decide tomorrow.”
Seeing the word “February” associated with Gavi’s return just fills me with hope and joy that we’ll see The Warrior back in action sooner rather than later. Barça badly need his unmatched passion and his great quality, and if everything goes according to plan and his knee issues are finally behind him, Gavi will be a massive boost for the entire club in the season’s stretch run.
