INTRODUCTION
Barcelona travel to the Anoeta stadium for their second game of the season.
The stalemate at the Camp Nou against Rayo Vallecano left a bitter taste; On one hand, we got to see the new signings in action and what they could bring to the team; On the other, 2 valuable points that would've been won on another day were dropped. There was also lack of fluidity in the team, understandably so, but this is expected to improve.
Real Sociedad are coming into this tie on the back of a 1-0 win over Cadiz, with Take Kubo grabbing the 24th minute winner in Andalusia.
Under Imanol, the Basque side have shown steady progression since his appointment in 2018, finishing with 62 points in the last two seasons. The agenda of this season however, will be to improve on that whilst closing the gap on the top 4 teams in La Liga.
INTERESTING STATS.
- The previous 6 visits to San Sebastian has seen Barcelona come off with 4 wins and 2 draws. The last meeting ended in a 1-0 thanks to Aubameyang's goal in the first half. This is the best ever run for the Catalans against the Basque outfit.
- This is in stark contrast to the years before when Anoeta was the bogey stadium for Barcelona, with 5 defeats and 3 draws endured by the Catalans.
- Real Sociedad have conceded 6 goals twice since 1995, both to Barcelona (2000 & 2021).
- Barcelona remain undefeated away since Xavi's arrival.
- Barcelona have failed to score in their last 3 La Liga games.
TEAM NEWS
Real Sociedad will remain without Mikel Oyarzabal, Alex Sola, Carlos Hernandez and Martin Merquelanz due to injuries. Diego Rico had to be withdrawn against Cadiz after sustaining a hamstring problem. Aihen Munoz is expected to replace Rico at Left back, while the rest of the squad who played against Cadiz will be available for selection.
DeJong and Kessie are expected to start alongside Pedri in Midfield for Barcelona, due to their positive cameos last weekend, Captain Busquets's suspension and Gavi's somewhat subpar performance against Vallecano.
If Kounde is registered on time, he's expected to slot in the back, either as a makeshift FB in a 4-3-3 or a CB in a 3-4-3, alonside Araujo and either of Garcia or Christensen. Roberto remains an option at Right back. Alejandro Balde is tipped by many to start ahead of Jordi Alba in LB/LWB after the veteran's poor performance against Rayo.
Lewandowski and Raphinha are expect to start In attack. Ansu Fati is also tipped to start ahead of Dembele after a bright cameo in Camp Nou.
Where are Real Sociedad vs Barcelona playing?
Location: Sociedad, Spain
Stadium: Reale Arena
Date: Sunday 21 August
Kick-off Time: 21:00 BST / 16:00 EST / 13:00 PST
VAR: Jose Luis Gonzalez Gonzalez
Referee: Jose Luis Munuera Montero
CONCLUSION
After finishing sixth last season, there's plenty of optimism surrounding Real Sociedad's chances of pushing for a UCL spot this season. They're a tough nut to crack and more often than not, pose a stern test for Barcelona, regardless of recent outcomes.
Barcelona however, know that anything other than a win will be unacceptable and are expected to fight to the death for the 3 points. A very comfortable victory for the Catalans is not out of reach but may be too much to ask for at this juncture. All that matters is the 3 points.
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