The striker could reappear this Saturday against Athletic Club (9pm) wearing a face shield after suffering a bone fracture in the inner orbit of his left eye against Villarreal.
Robert Lewandowski (37 years old) will reappear this Saturday against Athletic Club after missing the transcendental Copa del Rey match against Atlético de Madrid last Tuesday. The striker suffered a bone fracture on the inside of his left eye socket against Villarreal last matchday and the club's medical services ruled out his presence against the Colchonero team. Despite this, and as MD advanced, the striker will be able to be against the 'lions' wearing an orthopedic mask .
A tool that Barça players have been using a lot in recent years. For different circumstances, players such as Eric Garcia, Araujo, Cubarsí or Gavi have had to use this type of protection. Lewandowski will be the last to be added to this 'club of masked men' although it is not the first time he will wear the 'mask', since in 2015 he also had to use a protective mask.
These are the other Barça players who have worn masks:
Eric Garcia:
The player from Martorell was playing with a mask almost two months after fracturing his nose on November 5 against Brugge. He played until February 3 with protection, when he left the 'mask' behind in the match against Albacete.
Pau Cubarsi:
Cubarsi had to be given 10 stitches in November 2024 after suffering a big cut in Belgrade against Red Star. He wore a special mask that protected the wound, although it did not last as long as Eric.
Ronald Araujo:
Araujo fractured his jaw at the end of 2023 after a collision with Marcos Llorente. The defender decided to avoid surgery so as not to miss important games, opting to protect the area with a mask that allowed him to continue playing.
Gavi:
The player from Los Palacios suffered a fractured jaw in the pre-season of the 21-22 season, specifically in a friendly played in Austria against Red Bull Salzburg. Still under Ronald Koeman, he missed the first two games of La Liga and made his debut with the first team against Getafe using protection.
Serjio Busquets:
Busquets also had to wear a mask in some games in 2021 due to a crack in his upper jaw.
Lionel Messi:
When he was not yet 16 years old and was still in the cadet stage, Messi suffered a fractured cheekbone that forced him to play with a protective mask.
Puyol:
The Barça legend had to wear a mask several times throughout his career, showing the evolution of these over the years. The first time was in March 2003, when he wore a very bulky model due to a fracture in the orbit of the eye. A year later, in February 2004, he was forced to play again with protection due to a fractured cheekbone and in 2012 he suffered another fractured cheekbone, so he had to play with protection again.
Rafinha:
Rafinha suffered a broken nose in early 2017 that forced him to use this type of protection. It was in a fortuitous clash with Ter Stegen in a match with Athletic Club and the Brazilian was absent from the next match against Atlético de Madrid.
Luis Enrique:
The former Barça captain and coach also wore a mask for several weeks at the same time as Puyol in 2004. The Asturian suffered a fracture in his left cheekbone during training.