An opportunity that Samuel Umtiti cannot let pass him by

Samuel Umtiti is back but the real work remains in front of him: to play regularly and to remain at a good level, injury free.

The French defender has Ronald Koeman's confidence. The Dutch coach was complimentary of him after he stepped in to play 90 minutes against Granada.

With Gerard Pique injured and Ronald Araujo a doubt, Samuel Umtiti, along with Oscar Mingueza and Clement Lenglet, is one of three options for Wednesday's Spanish Supercopa semifinal against Real Sociedad.

The 'problem' is he has not played two games in a row in almost a year. The last time was on Feb. 9 and Feb. 15 against Real Betis and Getafe, two wins: 2-3 and 2-1.

The doubts about his knee remain and provoke scenes of panic, like at Granada, when he went down in pain early on -- even though it had nothing to do with his knee.

Wrapped in cotton wool

We're speaking about a World Cup winner and someone who was formidable alongside Gerard Pique before that tournament with France. He has played 120 games for Barça.

But Koeman had only handed him 55 minutes before the Granada game. He was only going to be on the bench against Granada until Araujo dropped out of the side after getting injured in the warm-up.

After the game, Koeman gave a Supercopa clue: "It was the first time in a long time Samuel's played 90 minutes and he did well. The centre-backs were good with Busi ahead of them, above all positionally. They made a lot of direct passes, which I like. Umtiti and Mingueza showed they have a place in the squad."

If Umtiti plays against La Real, it could be alongside Clement Lenglet, who was suspended against Granada. Even though it's the third season they have both been at the club, they have only played together five times, with Pique undroppable.

In those five games, the numbers are good: four wins and a draw. No losses.

The draw was the first time they played together was a nightmare defensively, though, a 4-4 draw with Villarreal. Since then, four wins: 0-3 at Eibar, 3-1 against Borussia Dortmund, 1-2 at Inter Milan and 2-3 at Real Betis.

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