Sergio Busquets

[DonAndres]

Gutted that he likely won't make the Clasico. I love Masch but I just can't imagine the quality of play being nearly as fluid without Busi there. We'll have slower ball movement in the center and have to rely on Mathieu in defense (I don't think Lucho trusts Pique-Bartra pairing). There's an iota of relief that Busi isn't out for longer but with the way our season needs to go (build momentum and regain the confidence that the team exuded in the 11 win run) it is a damn shame to not have him for a match as crucial as the Clasico and the return leg for City.

Samper should get a call up for the time being as backup. We'll see how he can do in la liga against decent opposition. With Masch, I have a lot less confidence in our buildup play. We'll remain defensively sound though.

 

[Barcaman]

We won all games with Mascherano as dm.
I am more worried about Mathieu, who'll inevitably go in Mascherano's place.

 

[Blaugrana Bull]

Damn it just saw the injury. Busi is one of our key players. Come back soon!

 

[Flavia]

From a random journalist on twitter:

Pilar Suarez ‏@pilsua 2 h
Informa Catalunya Radio que Busquets ha salido caminando por su propio pie, con ambos zapatos, lento pero sin apoyarse en nada ni nadie

"Catalunya radio informs that Busquets left walking on his own, with shoes on both feet, a bit slow, but not using crutches or anything".

 

[Leo_Messi]

From a random journalist on twitter:

Pilar Suarez ‏@pilsua 2 h
Informa Catalunya Radio que Busquets ha salido caminando por su propio pie, con ambos zapatos, lento pero sin apoyarse en nada ni nadie

"Catalunya radio informs that Busquets left walking on his own, with shoes on both feet, a bit slow, but not using crutches or anything".

Read it earlier as well. Encouraging news if true. Despite this then a sprain of this caliber might make him unavailable for a few weeks or 1 month. It would be foolish to rush him back and then see him suffer a relapse and sit out the remaining season. We need Busquets for the final stages in the league, CL and for the CdR final.

I want Busquets to return as soon as possible, especially for the El Clásico game, but I don't want him to get injured again due to the staff rushing his return.

 

[amircule]

From a random journalist on twitter:

Pilar Suarez ‏@pilsua 2 h
Informa Catalunya Radio que Busquets ha salido caminando por su propio pie, con ambos zapatos, lento pero sin apoyarse en nada ni nadie

"Catalunya radio informs that Busquets left walking on his own, with shoes on both feet, a bit slow, but not using crutches or anything".

Here's a video of him getting off the plane :
https://instagram.com/p/z00uSfrRhl/

 

[Blaugrana Bull]

Looks fine. That is his top speed right there.

 

[raki]

Looks fine. That is his top speed right there.

 

[Gallivanter]

From a random journalist on twitter:

Pilar Suarez ‏@pilsua 2 h
Informa Catalunya Radio que Busquets ha salido caminando por su propio pie, con ambos zapatos, lento pero sin apoyarse en nada ni nadie

"Catalunya radio informs that Busquets left walking on his own, with shoes on both feet, a bit slow, but not using crutches or anything".

Why wouldn't he be in a boot, even if just precautionary?

 

[Vlom]

Looks fine. That is his top speed right there.

Hahaha good one

 

[Qqqq]

http://robbro7.com/2015/03/03/why-javier-mascherano-is-a-bad-midfielder-for-barcelona/

I don't exactly agree a hundred percent but it's worth a read.

 

[Chong Li]

Here's a video of him getting off the plane :
https://instagram.com/p/z00uSfrRhl/

The fact that he's walking without crutches is encouraging.

Hopefully we've dodged that bullet and he'll be back in a week or so.

 

[serghei]

We won all games with Mascherano as dm.
I am more worried about Mathieu, who'll inevitably go in Mascherano's place.

I'd rather play Xavi - Raki - Iniesta in the midfield, and keep Masche in defence, than playing Mathieu as a CB against Real of all teams.

 

[DonAndres]

We won all games with Mascherano as dm.
I am more worried about Mathieu, who'll inevitably go in Mascherano's place.

And we had won all games with Song as DM for quite some time, not indicative of how playing Masch in midfield strengthens/weakens us for real tests. I don't doubt that we'll maintain the same or even better defensive solidity, but the purpose isn't just to stack clean sheets. We need to have a very fluid attacking system (especially for an opponent like RM) while Masch honestly slows us down and makes us more stale.

I'd be up for trying Raki there if it didn't mean relying so much on Xavi and Iniesta for central midfield. Samper is an option but we can't throw him in the deep end for important fixtures. Losing Busi puts us in a poor position. It means that playing Masch as DM is our (unfortunately) best option but that weakens our attack and forces us to play Mathieu. It's a pity that Samper isn't older or that we hadn't groomed him more this season, otherwise he'd be worth some more immediate trust.

 

[hardyboy]

The bad news is that he'd probably miss the Clasico, but the good news is that after the Clasico we don't play any games for 2 weeks due to international break. He would probably miss 4 games. Rayo Home, Eibar away, City Home and Real Home. Will probably be back against Celta..