Barcelona defender ruled out until March following back injury

Barcelona are struggling for a reprieve from their injury issues this season, and there will be no let up yet. Veteran left-back Marcos Alonso has been on the fringes this season, but as the Blaugrana enter the busiest stage of the season, they will be without the depth to rotate.

Alonso, 33, has a similar back problem to that from which Marc-Andre ter Stegen is suffering from. After the German goalkeeper underwent surgery to fix the issue, Barcelona have persuaded Alonso to do the same. The ex-Chelsea defender is awaiting a date and time for his operation.

According to Diario AS, he will be out until the start of March. It means he will miss much of their Copa del Rey run, the Spanish Supercup, and at least the first leg of their Champions League clash with Napoli.

Even though Alonso has played less than 300 minutes this season, and has missed the last month through the same back problem, it leaves Xavi Hernandez with just Alejandro Balde at left-back and Joao Cancelo at right-back as natural options. Others, such as Sergi Roberto, Jules Kounde and Ronald Araujo have filled in at right-back, but playing Cancelo and Balde so frequently is likely to affect their form and their risk of injury. It looks as if this will be Alonso’s last season at the club, with Atletico Madrid keen on signing him.