Aitana Bonmatí is back. The Barcelona midfielder received medical clearance and was named Sunday in the squad for the second leg of the Champions League semifinals against Bayern Munich, five months after a fracture in her left fibula ended her run in late November.
The match will be played at Spotify Camp Nou at 16.30 hours, with Barcelona carrying a 1-1 draw from the first leg in Munich and chasing a place in a sixth consecutive Champions League final.
Bonmatí, a triple Ballon d'Or winner, was seriously injured at the end of November during a training session with the Spanish national team on the eve of the second leg of the Nations League final against Germany. She underwent surgery on 2 December and has now returned to a Barcelona squad for the first time since the injury.
Pere Romeu called up 23 players for the match, and Bonmatí's return adds another major piece to a team trying to turn a balanced semifinal into a ticket to Oslo, where this year's Champions League final will be held.
The timing matters because Barcelona have little margin for error after the 1-1 first leg, and Bonmatí's availability gives Romeu a proven option in a game that can decide whether the club keeps its run of final appearances alive.