Barcelona dealt huge injury blow ahead of Copa del Rey clash with Real Madrid

Barcelona top scorer Robert Lewandowski looks set to miss Thursday night’s Copa del Rey semi-final first leg against Real Madrid through injury.

The 34-year-old has scored 25 times for Barça since joining from Bayern Munich in the summer, helping the Catalans climb to the summit of La Liga – his 15 league goals also puts him top of the standings for the coveted Pichichi Trophy.

Having scored a penalty against Manchester United in the Europa League last week – his first from the spot this season – Lewandowski drew a blank in a bitterly disappointing lost Almeria on Sunday.

The 2021 Ballon d’Or runner-up completed 90 minutes in that game, but Barcelona have since confirmed that he has suffered a hamstring injury.

“First team player Robert Lewandowski has a left hamstring strain. He is out and his recovery will determine his availability,” a short club statement on Monday read.

There is no clarification of when he might return, but the early expectation is that Lewandowski won’t play in Thursday’s Clasico at the Bernabeu.

On the rare occasions when Lewandowski has missed games this season – including a three-game suspension served in January – Ferran Torres or Ansu Fati have typically filled in.

After the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final against Real, the Bluagrana have games against Valencia (home) and Athletic Club (away) prior to another Clasico in La Liga on 19 March. The return leg of the Copa semi will be played at Camp Nou in early April.