Raphinha, Rashford ruled out as depleted Barça visit Atlético for Copa semi-final opener

Barcelona will travel to the Riyadh Air Metropolitano without two of their most explosive attacking options after Raphinha and Marcus Rashford were both left out of the squad for Wednesday’s Copa del Rey semi-final first leg against Atlético Madrid.

Raphinha failed to take part in Tuesday’s final training session and has not shaken off the physical discomfort that sidelined him at the weekend, prompting the club’s medical staff to rule the Brazilian winger out of the trip. Coach Hansi Flick had held out hope that the forward could recover in time, but the decision was taken to err on the side of caution.

The news was compounded by Rashford’s absence from the same session. The on-loan Manchester United forward, who has provided pace and directness since his January arrival, will also remain in Barcelona, leaving Flick scrambling to reconfigure an already stretched front line.

The casualty list does not end there. Pedri, Gavi and Andreas Christensen remain in the recovery phase of their respective injuries and have not been included in the travelling party, meaning the German tactician must once again dip deep into the club’s academy ranks to fill both midfield and defensive vacancies.

With the tie set to be played in front of a raucous Metropolitano crowd, Barcelona’s patched-up XI will need to summon every ounce of resilience to secure a positive result ahead of the return leg at Montjuïc next month.