Why is Pedri not playing for Barcelona against Copenhagen in the Champions League?
The Spanish midfielder will miss Barcelona’s final game of the league phase in the Champions League.
FC Barcelona will be without Pedri as they look to secure a top-8 position in the Champions League after the midfielder suffered an injury that will keep him out of action for at least a month.
The 23-year-old suffered what was later diagnosed as a right hamstring injury during their Champions League match day 7 fixture against Slavia Prague.
The morning after the game, club doctors conducted tests on the player and the club issued a statement that said the player is “expected to be one month” away from action.
INJURY UPDATE
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) January 22, 2026
Tests conducted this morning have confirmed that first team player Pedro González “Pedri” has a right hamstring injury, which he picked up during the game against Slavia Prague yesterday.
The recovery time is expected to be one month. pic.twitter.com/b5xGJdKjuw
Normally, Frenkie de Jong would replace the Spaniard, but he is suspended for the game having picked up 3 yellow cards in the first phase of the competition. As such, it is likely that centre-back Eric García will be pushed forward into midfield, with Pau Cubarsí and Gerard Martín in the middle of the back line.
Ahead of the game, Barcelona sit 9th in the table of 36 teams, just outside the top-8 which would guarantee them a direct pass into the next round, without having to play in the playoff round. A win would put them onto 16 points, but their future also depends on the results of other teams: a total of 8 teams are on the same number of points as the Catalans.
Their opponents have a slim chance of making the cut for the playoffs, as they dit on 8 points in 26th position. Their last away game in the Champions League was on Spanish soil, against Villarreal, just 155 miles away from Barcelona; in that game, a last-minute winner from Andreas Cornelius saw them take all three points back to Denmark.
It all comes down to today. ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/JW29ASC6Am
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) January 28, 2026
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Barcelona host Copenhagen at the Spotify Camp Nou on Wednesday 28 January at 3pm ET.
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