Barcelona coach Tata Martino has explained leaving Cesc Fabregas out of the squad for their clash with Real Sociedad.

Martino has rested a number of important players already this season, including Andres Iniesta, Xavi and Pedro, who hit a hat-trick in the 4-0 win at Rayo.

The boss said: "We have to think about what state we'll be in by March or April. Our aim is to have all our players in top form by the end of each competition.

"At the moment of truth, perhaps we won't care about how many minutes players have had, we'll be more concerned about what we need to do."