Barcelona: Ter Stegen and Umtiti back in training
The German goalkeeper and French centre half were surprising faces amongst those at training on Thursday as Ronald Koeman considers his weekend squad.
After an impressive victory over Juventus in the Champions League, Ronald Koeman was handed some more good news on Thursday. Just as he’d learned that young defender Ronald Araújo was going to be out for about a month due to a leg injury, medics gave the green light to Samuel Umtiti to take part in group training.
Barcelona defence returning
The Frenchman has been out since 3 July, when it was decided that stem cell therapy could help his knee recovery. Almost four months later, Umtiti, who tested positive for the coronavirus during his recovery, completed part of the session with the group. It’s still too early to tell when he’ll be likely to take his place in the line up again but at least the idea of him being match fit is on the near horizon. Getting back for the key match against Atlético Madrid on 21 November would be considered very positive.
Another important player at the back is also on the mend. Marc André Ter Stegen is expected to be back between the sticks long before Umtiti, potentially within a week or so. The goalkeeper has been missing for two and a half months, the time predicted after his knee operation, and will soon be giving Koeman a decision to make with number two, Neto Murara, having impressed for much of the time he’s been covering.
Ter Stegen shared his good news about being back training with a message on social media.