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A momentous evening awaits Barcelona, who can secure consecutive La Liga championships when their greatest rivals, Real Madrid, visit on Sunday night.
Hansi Flick's Blaugrana have taken full advantage of Madrid's turbulence, though even a Los Blancos side free from internal strife would have struggled to match their Clásico counterparts, who have reeled off 10 straight league wins.
The result is an 11-point cushion, with Barcelona handling things admirably in the recent absence of the extraordinarily talented Lamine Yamal. Deployed relentlessly by Flick since his remarkable breakthrough at senior level, Yamal's body eventually gave out last month.
With Raphinha dealing with a string of injury problems, Barça have relied heavily on their teenage sensation to step up. Without him, Flick's dynamic and technically polished side loses a degree of brilliance — and he's not the only key player absent from Sunday's Clásico. Kylian Mbappé is also out injured, though Madridistas currently have little patience for the Frenchman.
Here's the reason Yamal won't be lining up for Barcelona against Madrid.
Why Lamine Yamal Isn't Playing In El Clásico
Yamal doesn't boast the most dazzling record in this fixture, tallying five goal contributions across nine appearances. He had been averaging one goal involvement per match before picking up a hamstring injury during the 1–0 win over Celta Vigo last month.
The Spanish international pulled up after converting a penalty and was taken off at the break. He has since missed Barcelona's away victories against Getafe and Osasuna.
Once the full extent of his hamstring problem became apparent, there was never any real expectation that Yamal would return for the Clásico. He was in fact ruled out for the remainder of the season immediately. The bigger question became whether Yamal would be fit in time for this summer's World Cup.
Will Lamine Yamal Be Fit for the World Cup?
There is no shortage of injured stars heading into the tournament, and the loss of Yamal would be a major setback for FIFA.
Nevertheless, the news surrounding his hamstring recovery has been encouraging thus far. Barcelona have stated that the teenager, who won the Young Player of the Tournament award at Euro 2024, is "expected" to be available for the competition in North America this summer.
Club teammate Fermín López also struck an upbeat tone in a recent interview with Mundo Deportivo: "He [Yamal] is doing well. When you get injured it's hard at first because he's an ambitious guy who loves to contribute on the pitch and play.
"With this injury, he can't play until the World Cup. Right now he's doing well and just needs to focus on his recovery, and I think he'll be in great shape."
Spain's tournament begins against Cape Verde on June 15.