Flick confirms return of Barcelona duo Raphinha, De Jong

BARCELONA: Barcelona coach Hansi Flick announced that star attacker Raphinha and midfield lynchpin Frenkie de Jong have recovered from injury and could face Real Betis on Saturday.

The Catalans boast a 100 per cent record in all competitions this season but face a tough test in La Liga in Seville against third-placed Betis.

During his pre-match press on Friday, German boss Flick revealed the timely return of two of Barcelona's biggest names.

"If you ask him, he'll tell you he's ready to start, but we're taking things step by step. We have a lot of games in a short space of time and we need to manage that," Flick told reporters of Raphinha, who has scored 14 goals in eight outings for Barcelona this term.

The 29-year-old Brazilian picked up a knock on recent international duty and was unavailable for Barca's wins over Getafe in the league and Galatasaray in the Champions League.

Dutch international De Jong, 29, has not featured this season due to a knee issue sustained during the World Cup.

"He gives us another option in midfield and we'll see how he progresses," Flick said. "He's training well and is ready to get some minutes. He looks very focused and he's a top player."

The return of the pair will likely take some of the creative and goalscoring burden off Lamine Yamal's young shoulders.

The 19-year-old world champion has played the full 90 minutes in eight of the 10 competitive matches played by Barca this season, and in the other two he was substituted after an hour of play.

"He's a special player," Flick said.

"We have to manage his minutes, but the important thing is that he enjoys playing. That's how things are at the moment and I don't want to interrupt that."

After this weekend's trip to La Cartuja, Barcelona face a daunting visit to twice-defending Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday before hosting Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid in El Clasico five days later. - AFP