Eric García injured with Spain, leaving Barcelona with five casualties at the start of the season

The same symptom again: discomfort during warmup that ends up turning into a bigger problem for Barcelona. This time it was Eric García's turn, who had already missed the 3-2 win over England in the Nations League because of that same pre-match discomfort, and who ultimately had to leave the Spain camp.

The center back underwent medical tests upon returning from London, and with two matches coming up (against the Czech Republic and Croatia), the Royal Spanish Football Federation decided not to take any chances. The federation explained in a statement that the decision to release him was made to "avoid any risk and preserve the player's health."

The RFEF did not go into medical detail, but the tone of the statement suggests nothing serious is involved. Luis de la Fuente had hinted at something similar hours earlier in a press conference, playing down the drama without fully closing the door on doubts.

He has a small issue from the warmup, but it doesn't look like anything serious. On Sunday in Madrid we'll assess whether he can recover, obviously making sure there's zero risk for the player. Right now it doesn't seem like anything major, but with so little time and three matches so close together, we'll see if he has a chance to play. We'll see, and we'll see whether another teammate joins up.Luis de la Fuente

To cover the absence, the coach called up Robin Le Normand, of Atletico Madrid, who returns to the national team after almost a year without a call-up.

An infirmary that keeps filling up

Eric García's case is not an isolated one within the Catalan club. With him, Barcelona now has five players injured so far this season, a number that is starting to raise concern this early in the campaign.

It all began in preseason, when Roony Bardghji suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, the kind of injury that requires surgery and a long recovery process. Around that same time, Frenkie de Jong was dealing with a similar issue, also in his right knee.

Once official competition got underway, the problem kept adding names. Joan García had to come off at halftime against Racing de Santander on September 16 due to discomfort in his right knee. Three days later, on September 19, it was Andreas Christensen who could not finish the match against Sevilla, and further tests confirmed a muscle injury in the rectus femoris of his left quadriceps.

Now it remains to be seen how long Eric García will be out, though everything points to it not being too lengthy a layoff. In the meantime, Barcelona's coaching staff will keep juggling a defense that, match after match, keeps losing pieces along the way.