Barcelona host Getafe at the Nou Camp on Saturday afternoon and Quique Setien could be handed a fitness boost for the encounter.
The Catalan giants begin the weekend three points behind La Liga title rivals Real Madrid, who aren’t in action until Sunday night.
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In turn, with the opportunity to go level at the top with a win and put the pressure on Los Blancos, Barcelona will be itching for all three points to give themselves a lift in the title race.
According to Mundo Deportivo, they could be handed an important boost ahead of the encounter with Getafe as it’s noted that Samuel Umtiti returned to training with the rest of the group after sitting out on Wednesday due to concern over his knee.
With Clement Lenglet suspended this weekend after his red card in the win over Real Betis last time out, Setien will no doubt be hoping that he can rely on Umtiti and Gerard Pique to fill the gaps at the back in the heart of the defence.
Pique himself had emerged as a doubt earlier in the week before training with the group, as per the report above, and so with Umtiti following suit, it looks as though there is positive news for Barcelona ahead of Saturday’s clash.
It’s added in the report that Neto is also back in full training after being ruled out with an ankle injury last month, although Nelson Semedo continued to work alone in the gym and remains a doubt for this weekend.
Nevertheless, with their double injury blow in attack in mind with both Luis Suarez and Ousmane Dembele undergoing surgery, Setien would have been desperate to avoid having a selection headache at the other end of the pitch too.
Fortunately for the Barcelona boss, it appears as though both Pique and Umtiti will at least be in contention to feature against Getafe.