Hansi Flick isn't thrilled that Barcelona's Pedri is injured again. The key player will miss Sunday's big La Liga game against Villarreal. He's been dealing with a left hamstring issue since the Real Madrid game back on October 26. He already sat out five games last month, plus missed the Spain games in November.

Pedri's Hamstring Still Troublesome

After Barcelona lost 2-1 to Real Madrid, they said Pedri tore a muscle in his left thigh. This means he's out for weeks. He looked tired during that El Clásico game.

The club put out a statement saying Pedri has a tear in his left thigh. When he comes back depends on how he recovers.

Now, coach Flick says Pedri won't play against Villarreal because of a new hamstring issue.

Flick Confirms Pedri Is Out

Pedri? "No, he can't play," Flick told reporters. I'm not happy, but it happens. He's hurt, but I think he'll be ready for the next game (Espanyol).

Flick added, We need to care for him and get him treatment. No risks. It's best right now. We need him for Espanyol and the Super Cup. We have other good players, so we'll adjust. He has hamstring problems, and it's too risky to play him. He could play, but it's too risky.

Pedri broke Messi's record before.

Last weekend, during Barcelona's 2-0 win over Osasuna, Pedri broke a record held by Lionel Messi. At 23, he's now the youngest player to play 150 La Liga games for Barcelona. According to Opta, he did it at 23 years and 18 days old, beating Messi's record of 23 years and 121 days, set in 2010.

What's Next for Barcelona?

The team has won their last six La Liga games and is four points ahead of Real Madrid. Even without Pedri, they'll want to win against Villarreal to increase their lead.

The good news is there's a winter break coming up after this weekend. This should give Pedri time to heal and be ready for the Espanyol game on January 3.

So, Barcelona's football director, Deco, said they initially wanted Luis Diaz and Nico Williams to beef up their attack last summer. But they couldn't afford them or promise they could sign them up, so they went with their third pick, Marcus Rashford.

Even though Rashford started out as the number two guy behind Raphinha on the left, he's having a killer first half of the season. He's got the best goals-per-game average on the team right now.

Barcelona worked out a loan deal with Manchester United for this season, which cost them about €5m, with a choice to buy him later. Lately, there have been reports that Barcelona probably wouldn't use that buying option, which is worth €30m, but things might be changing. MD says that they're now leaning toward keeping Rashford instead of sending him back to United.

His seven goals and nine assists in 23 games have really helped Barcelona, and the fact that he can play all over the front line is another plus. People also like his accurate passes, his ability to shoot from far away (which helps against tight defences), and how he can threaten defences from different positions.

Keep in mind that the final decision will depend on how he plays in the second half of the season and how he handles getting less playing time if Raphinha stays healthy.

So, how likely is it that Barcelona can actually sign Rashford?

Well, it all comes down to what Barcelona does financially in the summer. If Robert Lewandowski leaves when his contract is up and they don't renew it, that would free up some money. The same goes for if Marc-André ter Stegen leaves. If Rashford signs a four-year contract with a top-tier salary, Barcelona would need to free up around €17.5m in salary space. But if they're still over their limit, they'll only be able to use 60% of the money they save or make on transfers.