De Jong and Araújo are among five Barça stars in danger of missing the first leg of the UCL semi-final, if they beat PSG.
After a turbulent few months, things have gone relatively smoothly for Barcelona since head coach Xavi Hernández announced he would be stepping down at the end of season. Although Real Madrid will almost certainly win LaLiga, Barça are unbeaten in 13 matches, a run that has taken them through to a Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain.
Raphinha outshines Mbappé in PSG-Barça first leg
The Catalans also won 3-2 in a topsy-turvy first leg of the last-eight clash at the Parc des Princes last Wednesday, with Raphinha netting twice and Andreas Christensen the winner as they look for UCL revenge following their last European tie against the French champions.
In the 2020/21 season, Lionel Messi’s last in Spain, Barcelona were comfortably beaten 5-2 on aggregate by PSG, the last team to defeat them in the Champions League knockout rounds. The Argentine scored both of Barça’s goals but was completely overshadowed by future teammate Kylian Mbappé, who netted a hat-trick in a 4-1 win at Camp Nou and a penalty in a 1-1 draw in Paris.
After a quiet display in the first leg in Paris, could the France captain torment La Blaugrana once again this week and next…and perhaps from next season onwards with Madrid?
Five Barcelona players at risk of a suspension
Christensen was the match-winner in the first leg almost immediately coming off the bench but was also one of seven Barcelona players who were in danger of missing the second leg through suspension. In an eventful 15-minute cameo, the Dane was indeed booked, as was club captain Sergi Roberto in the first half. Both players will sit out the return game against PSG.
Christensen and Roberto will have their disciplinary records reset after the end of the quarter-finals, but no fewer than five players will miss the first leg of the semi-finals if they pick up a yellow card on Tuesday and Barça progress: Frenkie De Jong, Ferran Torres, João Félix, Ronald Araújo and Lamine Yamal.
De Jong, Araújo and Yamal look set to play from the off, while Ferran Torres, and Félix may come off the bench at some stage, so all five are likely to be involved in one way or another.
What are the suspension rules in the Champions League?
Up until the end of the last eight, players who receive three yellow cards must serve a one-match suspension, followed by an additional one-game ban if they then reach an odd number of bookings (five, seven etc).
That would run over into the semi-finals if they were shown their third (or fifth, or seventh) yellow card in the second leg of the quarter-finals.
However, with everyone starting from scratch when the last four gets underway, it is impossible for players to miss the Champions League final due to an accumulation of bookings.