The World Cup qualification matches are all over, and that means that the Barça internationals are gradually reappearing in the Catalan capital and reporting back for club duty under Ernesto Valverde.
Ivan Rakitic, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets were all at training on Wednesday morning, joining Gerard Piqué and Marc Andre Ter Stegen, who were both back the day before. All have secured passage to the inals in Russia next year apart from Rakitic, whose Croatia picked up a huge win in Kiev to grab a second chance in November’s playoffs.
Busquets worked out in isolation while the remainder of the first team squad were joined by Barça B’s Morer, Santi Bueno and Moisés, as well as U19 goalkeeper Iñaki Peña.
The focus of efforts is of course on a red-letter appointment at the Wanda Metropolitano this weekend, the new home of an Atlético Madrid side that stands between Barça and an eighth consecutive win to start the Liga season.
Andrés Iniesta, who recently signed a new lifetime contract, also put in an appearance at the Ciutat Esportiva, where it was cloudy but warm enough at 23ºC. The first team captain is still recovering from a muscle injury sustained against Las Palmas and performed specific exercises separately from the main group.
