Barcelona boss Xavi calms Raphinha injury fears ahead of Napoli clash

The Brazil international was replaced in the latter stages of the first half against Mallorca after taking a blow to his ankle, and there had been fears that he could now be set for another spell on the sidelines.

However, Xavi said after his side's 1-0 victory that Raphinha had not picked up an injury, with the decision to replace him purely precautionary.

The forward is expected to be fit for Tuesday's Champions League last-16 second leg with Napoli, with Barcelona bidding to book their spot in the quarter-finals of the competition.

"Raphinha's substitution was for precaution. It was just a blow, in principle he's not injured," said the Catalan outfit's head coach after the narrow success over Mallorca.

The 27-year-old has spent two separate periods on the sidelines this season with muscular issues, but he has still managed to contribute five goals and eight assists in 26 appearances in all competitions.

Frenkie de Jong, Pedri, Alejandro Balde, Marcos Alonso and Gavi remain unavailable for selection, but there is a chance that Ferran Torres could recover from a thigh injury in time for the European contest.

Barcelona's 1-0 win over Mallorca, which was secured courtesy of a 73rd-minute effort from Lamine Yamal, moved the reigning champions into second position in the table, five points behind leaders Real Madrid.

The Catalan outfit are unbeaten in their last eight matches in all competitions, but they have only scored once in their last two games, and Xavi has said that the team "lack effectiveness in front of goal".

"We still lack effectiveness in front of goal. We created four or five chances against a team that barely concedes chances," he added during his post-match press conference.

"I suffered today, yes. Same story all season. We created enough chances to win by more than one goal. Scoring the penalty would have completely changed the match. Our effectiveness has cost us again.

"We created a lot of chances against a team that doesn't concede many of them. We were calm and patient. We played a solid match against a well-prepared opponent. It's very difficult to attack their 5-3-2.

"Our defensive feelings are very good. We have improved a lot in this aspect, that's how we're winning matches. Mallorca were equal to us a lot of the time because [Javier] Aguirre prepares his teams very well."

Barcelona are level at 1-1 with Napoli ahead of the second leg of their last-16 Champions League affair, with Victor Osimhen scoring for the Italian champions in the first leg after Robert Lewandowski had sent the Catalan giants into the lead in Naples.