Barcelona duo rested for upcoming friendly by national team manager

With the first international break of 2024 underway, a number of players from FC Barcelona have travelled away to represent their national teams.

Among those called up for action were Joao Felix and Joao Cancelo, both of whom were named in the Portugal squad for the friendly matches against Sweden and Slovenia.

Joao Felix, Cancelo to get a rest for one match

While both Felix and Cancelo are in the Portugal squad, manager Roberto Martinez has decided not to include them in the list for the first friendly against Sweden on Thursday.

Indeed, as confirmed by the Portuguese Football Federation’s official website, Felix, Cancelo, Diogo Dalot, Danilo Pereira, Otavio, Ruben Neves, Vitinha, and Cristiano Ronaldo will not be involved against Sweden.

Instead, all the aforementioned players, including the on-loan Barcelona duo, will join the national team camp at the start of preparations for the Slovenia match, which takes place next week.

Martinez called up a 32-man squad but only 24 are currently in consideration for the Sweden clash, with both Joao Felix and Joao Cancelo getting a breather.

Good news for Barcelona

Barcelona have not had the best of luck when it comes to players getting injured while away on international duty.

Furthermore, given the minutes that Cancelo has accumulated this season, a break for him bodes well, especially with the right-back dealing with some personal issues that led to him missing the Atletico Madrid clash.

As for Felix, the 24-year-old forward, too, could do with a rest as well, coming after a high-pressure game against parent club Atletico Madrid, during which he was on the receiving end of some harsh treatment from fans.