Andreas Christensen is expected to be passed fit by Barcelona in time for Saturday’s La Liga clash with Almeria.
The Denmark international has been out for over a month with an ankle injury but trained with the first team on Wednesday and is close to a comeback.
Christensen’s return will boost Xavi’s options and should please the Barca boss who wasn’t happy with his team’s defending against Viktoria Plzen.
Xavi used Gerard Pique and Marcos Alonso in central defense with Hector Bellerin and Jordi Alba as the two full-backs but saw his team give up a wealth of chances.