SM
Watford vs. Oxford Utd: 4 hrs 24 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
CV
La Liga | Gameweek 36
May 4, 2019 at 7.45pm UK
 
BL

2-0

Gomez (67'), Aspas (88' pen.)
FT(HT: 0-0)

Ernesto Valverde: 'Ousmane Dembele injury is a major blow'

:Headline: Ernesto Valverde: 'Ousmane Dembele injury is a major blow': ID:358277: from db_amp
The France international lasted less than 10 minutes against Celta Vigo.

Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde admits the loss of Ousmane Dembele to a hamstring problem early in the 2-0 defeat at Celta Vigo will be a "major blow" to their end-of-season ambitions.

With the LaLiga title already secure, Valverde opted to rest several key men at Estadio de Balaidos ahead of next week's Champions League semi-final second leg against Liverpool.

French forward Dembele, though, lasted less than 10 minutes before being forced off with a hamstring injury.

While the defeat, a first in the league since November, will not in itself be a major issue on the campaign, losing another attacking option could be.

Barcelona confirmed in a statement on the club website Dembele had "suffered a muscular injury in his right hamstring" and was set for further tests on Sunday to establish the full extent of the problem.

"He is an important player for us and it is a major blow with the big games we have coming up," Valverde told reporters, as quoted by Spanish media outlet Marca.

"I didn't replace him with Philippe Coutinho as I didn't want to run any more risks."

Defender Jean-Clair Todibo also went off during the second half, but Valverde hoped the problem was not serious.

Maxi Gomez finally broke the deadlock in the 67th minute before Iago Aspas wrapped things up with a late penalty, given for handball following a Video Assistant Referee referral.

Celta Vigo move five points clear of the relegation zone to 14th place, while Barca slipped to a first LaLiga defeat since November.

"We dominated the match at moments. Their first goal came and it gave them the option to go on and win the game. We had no answer," Valverde said.

"We played with a lot of new faces and in the second half we were unable to generate what we needed to score."

amp_article__358277 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2019-05-04 23:07:39:
html db last update - 2019-05-04 23:07:39 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Click here for more stories about Ernesto Valverde

Click here for more stories about Barcelona

Share this article now:
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Barcelona12110140112933
2Real Madrid1173121111024
3Atletico MadridAtletico126511871123
4Villarreal116322019121
5Osasuna126331716121
6Athletic Bilbao125431812619
7Real BetisBetis125431210219
8Mallorca12534109118
9Rayo Vallecano114431210216
10Celta Vigo125161820-216
11Real Sociedad124351010015
12GironaGirona124351517-215
13Sevilla124351217-515
14AlavesAlaves124171419-513
15Leganes122551216-411
16Getafe12174810-210
17Espanyol123181122-1110
18Las PalmasLas Palmas122371321-89
19Real ValladolidValladolid12228924-158
20Valencia11146817-97
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .