Barcelona midfielder considering January move amid playing time fears following injury recovery

After emerging through Barcelona’s youth system at the start of last season, Bernal’s season was cruelly cut short after he sustained the serious knee injury in his side’s 2-1 La Liga victory over Rayo Vallecano in August 2024.

However, after 382 days on the sidelines, Barcelona declared Bernal was fit once again on 13 September and the Berga-born prodigy made the perfect return as he recorded an assist in the Blaugrana’s 6-0 league victory over Valencia a day later, with Fermin Lopez, Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski all scoring braces at the Estadi Johan Cruyff.

Keen to ensure he is not rushed back too soon, Bernal has subsequently made just three more appearances for Barcelona this season - against Real Oviedo in the league and both Paris Saint-Germain and Olympiacos in the Champions League.

And in a new report from Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo, Bernal is reportedly considering all his options ahead of the January transfer window opening in less than two months’ time. The report claims that while Hansi Flick’s side are not planning on allowing Bernal to leave, the youngster is believed to be considering a loan move in his bid to earn more minutes.

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Bernal has also been left out of Spain’s Under-21 squad ahead of the upcoming international break, with head coach David Gordo citing a lack of playing time for his exclusion.

“Marc is one of our own, but he’s not in a comfortable situation right now,” said Gordo. “He’s getting very little playing time. And we’ve brought the squad we think will best help us get six crucial points for our league position.”

Spain U21s are preparing to take on San Marino and Romania in their next two European Championship qualifiers on Friday, 14 November and Tuesday, 18 November respectively. Gordo’s side are currently unbeaten in qualifying, having won their opening three games in Group A.

One Barcelona player who will represent his country during the international break is Lamine Yamal, who has been called up for Spain’s double-header against Georgia and Turkey. The winger was left out of La Roja’s squad for their World Cup qualifiers against Georgia and Bulgaria in October after Barcelona said his pubalgia injury had resurfaced.

However, Spain boss Luis de la Fuente had no qualms about recalling Yamal, saying: "I think the answer is obvious. I watched his last game [against Club Brugge], and I believe he’s in perfect condition.

“His coach [Flick] said he was ready to play. He's getting back to being the player he always has been, and we celebrate that. He will stay with us as long as we consider it appropriate.

"Watching the game the other day, Lamine is fit to play. We have two very important games and we need to field our best players. We have two hugely important matches to qualify for the World Cup, the stakes are massive and we want the best players with us.”

Before the international break, Barcelona lock horns with Celta Vigo in the league on Sunday evening. It remains to be seen whether Bernal will be given an opportunity to impress as Flick’s side look to bounce back from their 3-3 draw with Belgian side Club Brugge in the Champions League on Wednesday.

After the game, Flick backed his Barcelona charges - who also trail fierce rivals Real Madrid by five points in La Liga - to put in a much-improved performance against Celta, saying: "We have to keep working. We are not at our best, but we must stay positive.

“We’ll be able to get back to our best level when we have the likes Raphinha, Pedri, and Joan Garcia back. We are Barça and we want to be intense with and without the ball. We have the opportunity to do better against Celta.”

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