Iniesta misses Barca training

Barcelona captain Andres Iniesta missed training due to injury ahead of Saturday’s derby showdown with Espanyol.

Luis Enrique’s men face their neighbours at Estadi Cornella-El Prat but could be without Iniesta after the 32-year-old sat out Friday’s session with a right adductor problem.

Teenage midfielder Carles Alena trained with the first-team in Iniesta’s absence.

Barcelona returned to the top of LaLiga by virtue of a superior head-to-head record over Real Madrid following last weekend’s dramatic 3-2 Clasico win at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The reigning champions preserved their position at the summit by thrashing bottom side Osasuna 7-1 in midweek.

Iniesta sat out that rout as an unused substitute, while Alena replaced Lionel Messi for the final half hour. Madrid later responded with a 6-2 triumph at Deportivo La Coruna and retain a game in hand on their rivals.

Barcelona will report Malaga president Abdullah Al-Thani to Spain’s football governing body and La Liga authorities over his comments about the club on social media. Al-Thani reportedly made offensive remarks about Barcelona on Twitter after a fan asked about Malaga’s upcoming game against Real Madrid. Barcelona expressed its “rejection and indignation” of the tweet that “infringes upon the principles of fair play.”

“The Club, therefore, will report this case to the National Sports Council’s Anti-Violence Committee, and will bring the matter before the Royal Spanish Football Federation’s Competition Committee, as well as the Department of Integrity of La Liga.”