Pique back in Barcelona training ahead of Atletico Madrid showdown

Luis Enrique may be able to call upon the services of his World Cup-winning defender in a Copa del Rey semi-final second leg on Tuesday

Gerard Pique handed Barcelona a boost as he took part in training ahead of Tuesday’s Copa del Rey semi-final second leg against Atletico Madrid.

The centre-back was forced off at half-time of the 3-0 La Liga win over Athletic Bilbao on Saturday after picking up a muscle problem.

Neymar dreaming of World Cup win

Editors' Picks

Sarri vindicated for dropping Kepa as Chelsea & Pedro impress in Spurs win Magnificent Mane takes centre stage as league leaders Liverpool put on a five-star show Lukaku sends reminder that his Man Utd career is far from over Man City monitoring Barcelona & Chelsea target Jovic

Head coach Luis Enrique said the injury was simply a result of their hectic fixture schedule but there had been concerns that Pique would be unable to face Atleti at Camp Nou.

However, the Spain international trained in full with team-mates on Monday and it looks likely that he will be available at least for the matchday squad.

Barca hold a 2-1 lead from the first leg thanks to goals from Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi, although Antoine Griezmann’s second-half header gave Atletico a lifeline.