LA LIGA PREVIEW: BARCELONA VS ATHLETIC CLUB

INTRODUCTION

Barcelona look for for their next league win as they welcome Athletic Bilbao, along with a familiar face, to Camp Nou.

Barcelona were able to shake off last week's disappointments when they sunk the Yellow Submarines in the first 45 minutes. Goals from Lewandowski( x2) and Fati were enough to secure a 3-0 victory against Unai Emery's men. Now they face another stern, if not sterner test against Athletic Club. 

The folks from Basque country are under the tutelage of former Barcelona coach, Ernesto Valverde, someone who knows the Camp Nou quite well. They began their season well enough, scoring freely and hardly conceding, although a few mixed results have followed, slowing their momentum a bit. They will however come to Barcelona with the notion that they can cause an upset, regardless of what previous statistics say.

INTERESTING STATS 

In the last three years, Athletic have knocked Barça out of the Copa del Rey twice and also the Spanish Super Cup once. But despite those slips in cup competitions, the Catalans have remained solid in the league, losing just one of their last 17 meetings with the Basques.

Last five La Liga meetings

27/02/22: Barça 4-0 Athletic

21/08/21: Athletic 1-1 Barça

31/01/21: Barça 2-1 Athletic

06/01/21: Athletic 2-3 Barça

23/06/20: Barça 1-0 Athletic

TEAM NEWS

Barcelona 

The injury list is being trimmed gradually, only Araujo, Christensen and Depay remaining sidelined, although the Dane and the Dutch are much closer to being back in action than the Uruguayan. Everyone else is fit for this game.

Even though Xavi's rotation last time out yielded dividends, he claimed that more changes will be seen in this game.

Points of interest will be Kounde's partner at Centre Back, along with the Left Back. Keeping the Williams' brothers in mind, Xavi can't afford to get this wrong. Whether or not Busquets, Raphinha and Dembele come back to the XI is eagerly debated by fans.  One thing's for sure: whoever plays has to be on top of their game.

Athletic Club

Ander Capa and Jon Morcillo will be on the sidelines for Athletic Club due to their respective injuries. Valverde has on otherwise fit squad for this clash.

The Williams brothers are sure to start in attack, alongside possibly Munain, who can drop to midfield in a 442 formation. Sancet, Berengeur, Hererra round up the midfield.

Barça target Inigo Martinez will surely start in CB position. Who partners up with him remains to be seen. Lekue and Dimarcos will be  the FBs. National Team keeper Unai Simon will start between the sticks.

Where and when are Barcelona vs Athletic playing?

Location: Barcelona, Spain

Stadium: Spotify Camp Nou

Date: Sunday 23 October

Kick-off Time: 20:00 BST / 15:00 EST / 12:00 PST

VAR: Jose Luis Gonzalez Gonzalez

Referee: Juan Martinez Munuera

CONCLUSION

Athletic Club have had their best start to the season in years and have the artillery to cause their hosts a number of problems. Ernesto Valverde surely will have an agenda in mind as he visits the place he once called home. 

Barcelona however, have the superior quality on paper, and while that might not be enough sometimes, the Catalans will know the essence of all 3 points and will not want to lose such a game in front of their fans. If they replicate their hunger against Villarreal, they should be able to see off the Basque side with ease.

LA LIGA PREVIEW: BARCELONA VS VILLARREAL

INTRODUCTION

  Barcelona look to get back to winning ways as they embark on 3 successive games at the Camp Nou in SIX days, starting with the Yellow Submarines.

  Last week was nothing but a nightmare for Xavi's men; their fantastic La Liga run ended with an unceremonious defeat at the Estádio Santiago Bernabeu. The consequences of the injuries sustained by the defensive line during the international break have come to the fore, and Xavi will want to steady the ship as soon as possible to avoid dropping more points.

  Villarreal have had an inconsistent start to the season, but having qualified for the Knockouts in the UECL, they can now shift their primary focus to improving their standings in La Liga. No sterner test than the visit to the Camp Nou, even though they won on the same ground in the last game of the previous season. Barcelona had already achieved the minimum objectives by then. This time, circumstances differ.

INTERESTING STATS

  Barça went on an incredible spree of 27 games without defeat to the ‘Yellow Submarine’ in all competitions.

  That run came to an end in May of this year when Villarreal beat the Catalans in the last game of the 2021/22 season.

- Barcelona have won their last three home matches in La Liga.

- Villarreal have failed to score in their last four away matches in La Liga.

- Barcelona have kept a clean sheet in their last four home matches in La Liga.

- Barcelona have scored 15 goals in their last six meetings against Villarreal.

Last five games (all La Liga)

22/05/22 Barça 0-2 Villarreal

27/11/21 Villarreal 1-3 Barça

25/04/21 Villarreal 1-2 Barça

27/09/20 Barça 4-0 Villarreal

05/07/20 Villarreal 1-4 Barça

TEAM NEWS 

Barcelona

Long-term absentees Ronald Araujo, Andreas Christensen and Memphis Depay remain unavailable to Xavi. Hector Bellerin makes an auspicious return to the squad, although he's not expected to start. After seeing what's transpired in their last 3 games, Xavi is expected to make changes here, especially in midfield and attack. Jules Kounde will certainly start this one, who starts alongside him is up for debate. Frank Kessie and Frenkie DeJong are both tipped to be heavily involved in this clash, with Busquets probably taking a back seat. Pedri will need a deserved rest  for what's to come and so might sit this one out as well.

Ferran Torres and Ansu Fati both had good cameos over the weekend and could start alongside Robert Lewandowski over Raphinha and Dembele.

Villarreal

 The Yellow Submarines are nursing their fair share of injuries in the form of Foyth, Moreno and Coquelin.  Femenia and Lo Celso are also doubts. That being said, they have capable deputies for these players and as such, their absence might not be felt so much.

 Arnaut Danjuma was the target man against Osasuna and will likely feature alongside Pino and Jackson in front. So much pace that Barcelona's defense must be prepared to handle. El Commandante is yet to be fully utilized by Emery in La Liga, but given his favorable record against the Catalans, it should be no surprise to see him in the starting line up. Parejo will certainly dictate things in Midfield.

Rulli has been quite exceptional so far and will guard the post behind, Albiol and Torres. Pedraza and Mandi will hold the FB positions.

Where and When are Barcelona vs Villarreal playing?

• Location: Barcelona, Spain
• Stadium: Spotify Camp Nou
• Date: Thursday 20 October
• Kick-off Time: 20:00 BST / 15:00 EST / 12:00 PST
• VAR: TBC
• Referee: TBC

CONCLUSION

Villarreal currently boast the best defense in the league at this stage of the season and are capable of causing Barcelona problems on their best day, but Barcelona will want to roar back to winning ways and this kind of game is the perfect opportunity to display their superiority and mute doubts.