Barcelona will be without the services of four first-team players for Wednesday's Champions League encounter with Bayern Munich at Camp Nou.
Sergi Roberto became the team's latest absentee when he disclosed his left shoulder during Sunday's 4-0 victory over Athletic Bilbao in La Liga.
"He's very important. I have a lot of confidence in him and he's a loss. He was in an extraordinary moment. This injury is a shame. We have [Hector] Bellerin, who can cover. There are also other options like Jules [Kounde]. Hector is 100% recovered," Xavi told reporters during his press conference ahead of this match.
Roberto is joined on the sidelines by Ronald Araujo, with the Uruguay international undergoing thigh surgery at the end of September.
Memphis Depay is also not yet ready to return from a thigh problem, while Andreas Christensen remains out with an ankle issue.
© Reuters
However, Xavi has revealed that Christensen is in the latter stages of his recovery, with the Denmark international potentially being available for selection against Valencia in the league this weekend.
"Christensen is not ready. I hope he will be by the end of the week," said the head coach.
There were fears that Gavi would be unavailable for this contest due to the knock that he picked up during the league victory over Athletic on Sunday.
However, the Spain international is in the squad, and there have been suggestions that he could feature as part of a four-man midfield with Pedri, Frenkie de Jong and Sergio Busquets.
Barcelona could be out of contention in terms of a spot in the round of 16 by the time that this game kicks off, though, as Inter Milan would secure the second and final qualification spot if they beat Viktoria Plzen in the early match in Group C.
Xavi, though, is maintaining "a small hope" that the Catalan outfit can still find a route into the knockout round.
© Reuters
"More than believing in miracles, we maintain a small hope that something can happen. Look, it's complicated. We are in an uncomfortable situation where we no longer depend on ourselves, but you should never lose hope," the head coach told reporters.
"We will meet at Camp Nou two hours before the Bayern game and we will be following the Inter match. We will all watch it together in the dressing room before we play.
"Bayern are an intense, physical, well-coached side, one of the best in the world, and it is an important game for us regardless of what happens in Milan.
"We want to win this game and show that we can compete at this level. When we lost in Munich, we played well but we were not clinical and the result was bad. This time we want the performance and the result."
Barcelona have won one, drawn one and lost two of their four matches in the section to sit third on four points, three points behind second-placed Inter and eight behind leaders Bayern.
Barcelona squad vs. Bayern Munich:
Ter Stegen, Pena, Tenas; Bellerin, Pique, Alonso, Alba, Kounde, E Garcia, Balde; Busquets, Pedri, Kessie, F de Jong, Gavi, Torre; Dembele, Lewandowski, Fati, Ferran, Raphinha
Matt Law
