Barcelona are preparing to go over a month without one of their key players and alarming numbers have shown they can ill-afford to go without him. 

Xavi Hernandez’s side have enjoyed a fast start to the season, and the LaLiga titleholders currently sit atop the table after six match days. 

Saturday’s tie against Celta Vigo saw them claw back a win from two goals down, after an efficient brace from Robert Lewandowski sparked a comeback capped by a late winner courtesy of Manchester City outcast Joao Cancelo. 

But an injury to Dutch midfielder Frenkie de Jong will have cast a pall around the Blaugrana, as will news that the former Ajax player could be out for up to seven weeks. 

De Jong was replaced by wonderkid Gavi during the first half of the home tie, and the club has released a statement confirming an injury to the ‘tibiofibular syndesmosis in his right ankle’. 

Whilst there is no specific timeframe for his recovery, the player’s absence could spark concern for his head coach. 

As per Spanish outlet Sport, Barca have won just six of the matches that De Jong has been unavailable for selection for since his 2019 move to Ajax. 

The Dutchman has only missed 16 matches due to injury in total since his transfer across the four seasons he has spent in Catalonia, and without him, the side has registered seven draws and three defeats. 

Over the ties, Barcelona have also struggled for goals, scoring just 18 over the ties where he has been unavailable for selection, whilst conceding 13. 

The lion’s share of the wins without the 26-year-old came in his first season, when he was struggling to settle into the side, with four wins and three draws coming during his seven absences. 

De Jong was available for the entirety of the 2020/21 season, but in 2021/22, Barca won none of the three games he was unavailble for, drawing two and losing one. 

During the club’s title-winning season last term, he missed seven games in october and April, with the team frustrated during the period to see out two wins, two draws and two defeats. 

The midfielder has started every match during the Blaugrana’s campaign this season, scoring a crucial goal during the team’s 4-3 showdown with Villarreal at the end of August.    

Despite a tumultuous start to his time at the Camp Nou – which saw him frequently linked to a move away from his ‘dream club’ to join Manchester United – De Jong has settled under Xavi and become a stalwart in the club legend’s side. 

The head coach had an understandably pessimistic response to his injury on Saturday, calling De Jong ‘a key player’. 

‘It’s a big loss,’ he shared after the final whistle. ‘It’s a tough one because of the way we play and the level he has been at. He’s a key player for us, he has been really good since last season.’

But Xavi looked for the silver lining after the incident, adding: ‘We have options to come in for him, so hopefully we won’t suffer too much. 

‘We will see how he is after the (October) international break. That’s all we can say for now.’

Record numbers of patients in pain due to problems with their teeth are flooding the NHS urgent care helpline because they can’t find a dentist, the MoS can reveal.

Every month, 85,000 desperate patients call 111 with dental emergencies, compared with 60,000 in 2018 – a rise of 42 per cent.

NHS 111 staff say they are regularly contacted by patients with tooth pain, meaning that doctors on the helpline take longer to get to patients with life-threatening symptoms such as chest pain.

The number of NHS dentists has plunged to 23,000 – its lowest in a decade. Nine in ten NHS dental practices are not accepting new adult NHS patients, leaving one in five Britons with no dentist.

The British Dental Association said many dentists no longer wanted to do NHS work because they were paid for only a limited number of NHS treatments each year. 

The Government wants to train thousands more within ten years, but Dr Nigel Carter, of the Oral Health Foundation, said: ‘There’s a possibility NHS dentists won’t exist by 2030 – the system is so broken.’

Dr Nisa Aslam, a 111 GP, said: ‘We regularly hear from patients with tooth pain so bad they are desperate. These patients are probably in more pain that any patient I talk to because tooth pain is so intense. There’s little I can do – I’m not allowed to offer dental advice.

‘This means 111 doctors spend a substantial time answering calls from patients they cannot treat.’

NHS England did not respond to a request to comment.

Annual turnover at Burberry has surpassed £3billion after loosening Covid-related restrictions produced a resurgence in foreign tourist spending.

The luxury retailer revealed revenue increased by 10 per cent to £3.1billion for the 52 weeks ending 1 April, driven by solid performances in Continental Europe and the Asia-Pacific region during the latter part of the period.

Store sales across Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa grew the most of any territory, jumping by 27 per cent, with the share of traveller purchases rising to over 40 per cent from less than a quarter the previous year.

By contrast, trading in Mainland China – one of the company’s biggest markets – was dampened by continued draconian lockdown rules for most of 2022, slowing the firm’s total sales growth before recovering in the new year.

For the fourth quarter, Burberry’s shop purchases rose by 16 per cent, with revenues soaring by more than half in the South Asia Pacific market as Chinese tourists started returning.

At the same time, purchases of rainwear clothing in its stores doubled, which the group attributed to the recent heritage-focused rebranding spearheaded by Daniel Lee, its new chief creative officer.

Customers also snapped up more men’s leather goods, as well as Lola handbags in the aftermath of an advertising campaign featuring models such as Bella Hadid, Ella Richards and Jourdan Dunn. 

The strong trading performance helped Burberry’s reported operating profit climb by 21 per cent to £657million and enabled it to recommended a 30 per cent hike in its annual dividend.

‘I am very pleased with what we have achieved this year,’ said Burberry’s chief executive Jonathan Akeroyd.

He added: ‘While the external environment remains uncertain, I am confident we can achieve our FY24 and medium-term targets as we focus on executing our plan to realise Burberry’s potential as the modern British luxury brand.’

However, investors responded negatively to the brand revealing its full-year sales fell across the Americas, unlike many of its prominent European rivals, and the group upholding its outlook for the 2024 financial year.

Based on currency spot rates of 21 April, the London-listed firm forecasts currency movements will cost approximately £70million in turnover and £40million in underlying profits this year. 

Burberry shares were 6 per cent lower at £23.68 late Thursday morning, making them the second-worst performer on the FTSE 100 Index, although they have still jumped by about 59 per cent over the past 12 months.

Sophie Lund-Yates, lead equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: ‘The maintaining of existing guidance is a little lacklustre, and investors are also not blind to the fact that significant macroeconomic uncertainty persists.

‘As a higher-end name, Burberry is more insulated from ups and downs than some, but it’s not quite in the very top echelons of luxury fashion, so there’s slightly less room for manoeuvre.’