Lamine Yamal has aggravated groin injury and will miss World Cup qualifiers for Spain

By Canadian Press on October 3, 2025.

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Lamine Yamal has aggravated an injury in his groin area and will be sidelined for two to three weeks, Barcelona said Friday.

That announcement came hours after Spain had called him up for World Cup qualifiers that he will now miss.

Barcelona said the “winger’s groin problem has reappeared” after its 2-1 loss to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League this week.

The injury has been a point of contention between Barcelona and Spain’s national team.

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick had lashed out at Spain for using Yamal in two wins in early September, saying it had “not taken care” of him and insinuating that he had played while injured.

The 18-year-old Yamal then missed four games for Barcelona due to “discomfort in the pubic area”.

The Spain camp denied he had played while hurt, saying Yamal had passed all its standard medical procedures and that Barcelona had not indicated he had any fitness issues.

Spain coach Luis de la Fuente said earlier on Friday when he named his squad that he had “no conflict with Hansi Flick,” and defended his handling of the health of his players.

“We take zero risks, only the risks that any player takes on when one plays a sport,” De la Fuente said. “If a player comes with the team it means he is healthy, and if he plays it means he is in playing condition.”

Yamal has since played two games for Barcelona, including 90-plus minutes against PSG on Wednesday.

He is not available for Barcelona’s visit to Sevilla on Sunday in La Liga, and will also be out when Spain hosts Georgia on Oct. 11 and Bulgaria three days later.

Yamal helped his country win the 2024 European Championship.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Joseph Wilson, The Associated Press