Ivan Rakitic has been left out of Barcelona's squad for Sunday's trip to Villarreal in La Liga.

The Croatia international midfielder had been an ever-present in Luis Enrique's side since signing from Sevilla in 2014, but has found himself in-and-out of the team over the six weeks.

He was taken off at half-time in the draw with Real Sociedad, after an hour in the Clasico against Real Madrid and then missed Barca's next three games, reappearing in a heavily rotated side in the Copa del Rey game against Hercules prior to Christmas.