Barcelona play down Neymar injury fears after Real Madrid stalemate

Neymar has given Barcelona manager Luis Enrique a new headache after finishing the weekend's 1-1 draw against Real Madrid with "muscle fatigue in the groin area". The Brazil international has already been ruled out of the forthcoming games against Borussia Mönchengladbach and Osasuna as he is suspended in both the Champions League and La Liga.

Alarm bells rang at the Nou Camp on Monday morning after it was revealed Neymar and Gerard Pique missed the final training session before the Champions League dead rubber with Monchengladbach on Tuesday night.

Pique has struggled with an ankle injury in recent weeks while the Brazi international was replaced by Denis Suarez in the 87<sup>th minute of El Clasico – before Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos denied the Catalans victory with a stoppage-time equaliser.

Barcelona have played down any major injury concerns, revealing Neymar ended the contest with some niggles in the groin area.

"The FC Barcelona medical services conducted tests on striker Neymar this Monday morning and were able to confirm that the trouble he is feeling is due to muscle fatigue in the groin area. They also determined that there is no sign of any injury," the club confirmed. "It means that the Brazilian will be doing special physiotherapy for the next few days and his return to normal training will depend on how matters progress."

Thanks to his suspensions Neymar will have at least two games off to recuperate. He saw his fifth yellow card of league season during the draw against Real Madrid and was also booked in the last Champions League clash with Celtic following a clash with right-back Mikael Lustig. This way, Barcelona will be hoping that the Brazilian could shake off his groin niggles in the coming days to be ready to return to action in the Catalan derby against Espanyol on 18 December.

Meanwhile, Barcelona have failed to provide any update on Pique's situation, but the centre-back is expected to be rested against Mönchengladbach, as the Catalans have already secured the first place in Group C ahead of City.