Xavi confirms imminent return from injury for Ferran Torres

The 24-year-old has been absent since the end of January due to the thigh problem which he picked up in the La Liga clash with Osasuna.

Torres has missed Barcelona's last four league games, in addition to the first leg of their last-16 Champions League contest with Napoli in Italy.

The Spain international will again be absent against Athletic Bilbao at San Mames on Sunday evening, but Xavi has said that the attacker should be back against Mallorca on March 8.

"He is almost there and in principle he will be with the team next week. We didn't want to take unnecessary risks with him," Xavi told reporters during his press conference on Saturday.

Torres has been in strong form for Barcelona during the 2023-24 campaign, scoring 11 goals and registering four assists in 32 appearances in all competitions.

The Spaniard netted three times and provided one assist in six appearances in the group stage of this season's Champions League, while he has seven goals and three assists in 21 La Liga games this term.

The forward has a contract with his Catalan club until June 2027, although there has recently been speculation surrounding his future, with a return to the Premier League this summer thought to be a possibility.

Torres is one of four Barcelona players currently on the sidelines through injury, with Gavi and Alejandro Balde both out for the season due to knee and hamstring injuries respectively, but Marcos Alonso should recover from a back problem before the end of the campaign.

Xavi has said that he is still intending to stand down as Barcelona manager this summer despite the team's recent improvement.

As a result, he is not expected to be involved in the team's plans for the summer transfer window, but the head coach was asked on Saturday about which players Barcelona should be targeting.

"I think the way football is set up, you have to have all the profiles in the squad. Technical players, physical players, players who go into space. Football has changed a lot. Without losing our DNA, we have to have all profiles," he responded when quizzed on the summer market.

Barcelona's recent improvement has left them in third position in the La Liga table, eight points behind leaders Real Madrid and just two points from second-placed Girona.