Andres Iniesta Ruled Out vs. Athletic Club, Olympiakos with Thigh Injury

Barcelona playmaker Andres Iniesta will be out of action against Athletic Club on Saturday and Olympiakos on Tuesday because of a thigh injury.

Sport's Javier Miguel relayed the club's statement on the matter, which said: "Andres Iniesta has pulled the gracilis muscle in the right thigh [and] will have to miss this weekend’s game at Athletic Club." 

Miguel added Iniesta will be unavailable for the UEFA Champions League trip to Greece and he will also be a doubt to face Sevilla on November 4.

The midfielder missed training on Friday, per the club's Twitter feed:

The 33-year-old's considerable powers may now be slightly on the wane, but it's a blow for any side to lose a world-class operator, and Barcelona are no exception.

Iniesta knits their attacking play together with his exceptional vision and the distribution, and with him absent, Lionel Messi is often forced to drop deeper into midfield to replace him as the team's playmaker.

Messi is excellent in that role, but it slightly hinders the effectiveness of their forward play by taking him away from his usual position on the right.

With Iniesta out, the likes of Andre Gomes and Denis Suarez will need to do their utmost to keep things ticking over in order to mitigate his absence.