Barcelona Loses Another Key Player As Sergio Busquets Suffers Ankle Injury

Already without injured midfielder Andres Iniesta, Sergio Busquets' injury comes at a bad time for Barcelona. With big games coming up, including this Thursday's Copa del Rey quarterfinal against Real Sociedad and this Sunday's league trip to Real Betis, Barcelona would definitely miss the defensive midfielder.

Andres Iniesta injured his knee during Barcelona's game against Valencia last Saturday, Jan. 14. As a result of the injury, Barcelona announced that Iniesta is expected to miss at least six to eight weeks.

A statement released by Barcelona said that Sergio Busquets has undergone tests and has confirmed the nature of Busquets' injury. The statement, however, does not say how long Busquets would be out of commission.

"After the injury picked up on Sunday, Busquets has undergone tests to find out the exact extent of the problem," the statement said. "Results on Monday confirm that he has a sprained external lateral ligament in his right ankle. The player is out and his return will depend on his recovery."

But reports say that Sergio Busquets would be out for two weeks. If Barcelona wins against Real Sociedad and advances to the semifinal of the Copa del Rey, there's a good possibility that Busquets would miss the two-legged semifinal, which takes place over the next two weeks. Barcelona currently holds a 1-0 lead from the first leg.

Sergio Busquets has played 27 out of 32 games for Barcelona this season. Busquets has also started 17 of Barcelona's 19 league games so far this season.