Koundé out longer than expected, Flick hopes for return after international break

Jules Koundé will not return before the next international break. Barcelona manager Hansi Flick confirmed this on Saturday in a press conference, ahead of the trip to Madrid to face Atlético in La Liga. “It’s taking a bit longer than expected. We hope to see him back after the international break,” said the German.

The French international defender has not played a single minute since October 17, when Barcelona won 2-5 away at Real Betis. An ankle sprain suffered shortly after has kept him sidelined, and the length of his unavailability now exceeds the initial estimates from the Catalan medical staff. “We hoped he could return sooner, but we need to take care of him. We’ll see how it evolves day by day,” Flick added.

As a direct consequence, Koundé will spend the international window nursing his ankle, having also not been included by Zinédine Zidane in the new France manager’s first squad list — as was already the case in September.

Beyond the injury, the situation of the former Girona player raises questions about his status within the blaugrana club. Since the start of the season, he has featured in only eight matches across all competitions, for just 458 minutes of playing time. This modest playing time had already weighed on Zidane’s decision to leave him out of his first squad selection.