LA LIGA PREVIEW: ATLETICO MADRID VS BARCELONA

In a fixture than transcends more than mere 90 minutes on the field, the stage is set for a clash of styles that sees two teams under transition of varying kinds go head to head. 

Atletico Madrid will host a high flying Barcelona in this weekend's biggest fixture. Diego Simeone's men might not win La Liga this season, but they'll do everything they can to close the gap and ensure a top 4 finish, and that starts tonight against the current league leaders.

Atleti currently sit at 4th position with 27 points, 11 points behind their visitors. While long vaulted as a strong defensive unit, they've been inconsistent this season, having dropped out of Europe completely after finishing last in their Champions League group before the World Cup. They are also way off the pace in the title race, but they come into this game on the back of wins against Elche in the league and Oviedo in the Copa del Rey, scoring 2 goals and keeping clean sheets on both counts. 

Barcelona however, are sitting at the summit of the league and are sure to remain in that position regardless of the outcome of this game, after Real Madrid lost to Villarreal. They currently boast the best defense in the league, which has been the foundation of their domestic success this season.

Despite the horrors of the Champions league group stages, Barcelona are still in contention for 4 trophies this season. They had to dig deep to go past Intercity into the next round of the Copa del Rey ( they'll be travelling to Ceuta for that, about 12 hours away!), while the Spanish super cup semi final against Real Betis on Thursday looms. They'll then face Manchester United in the Europa League play-offs come February. With all this to look forward to, Xavi will hope that every member of the squad is in tip top shape to allow rotations with minimal margin of error.

INTERESTING STATS 🧮

- Atletico Madrid have won their last two home games against Barcelona in La Liga, keeping a clean sheet in both clashes. It is just the second time in history that they have managed the feat.

- Barcelona have lost just two of the last 24 games against Atletico Madrid in La Liga.

- A loss on the night will see Barcelona suffer away defeats to both Madrid giants in the same season for only the third time this century.

- It is the fifth time that Barcelona have faced off against Atletico Madrid in their first game of the calendar year. They are yet to lose to the Rojiblancos on any of the occasions.

- Barcelona have conceded just six goals in 15 La Liga games this season, by far the best defensive record of any side in the Spanish top flight this season.

Last five meetings

30/6/20 (LIGA) Barça 2 (OG, Messi) Atlético 2

21/11/20 (LIGA) Atlético 1 Barça 0

8/5/21 (LIGA) Barça 0 Atlético 0

2/10/21 (LIGA) Atlético 2 Barça 0

06/02/22 (LIGA) Barça 4 (Alba, Gavi, Araujo, Alves) Atlético 2

TEAM NEWS

Atletico Madrid 🔴⚪

Atletico could be boosted by the return of Stefan Savic, who has trained ahead of the match, but Sergio Reguilon and Mario Hermoso are both injury doubts for the home side. Rodrigo DePaul is still unavailable, Nahuel Molina as well.

Simeone is expected to deploy his side out in a 3-5-2 formation. Jan Oblak should start in goal behind the back three of Stefan Savic, Axel Witsel and Jose Gimenez.

The trio of Geoffrey Kondogbia, Pablo Barrios and Koke will act as the engine room in the midfield, offering Marcos Llorente and Yannick Carrasco the freedom to push forward on the flanks. Alvaro Morata and Antoine Griezmann are expected to lead the line against a Barca side that has been tested since resumption of club football. João Felix has scored in his last 3 La Liga games and was rested against Oviedo, but the uncertainty around his future makes it unsure if he'd start this one.

Barcelona🔵🔴

Barcelona will be without top goalscorer Robert Lewandowski and Jordi Alba through suspension. Everyone else is fit and available for this clash.

Marc Andre TerStegen, imperious this season between the sticks, will return to the starting XI after sitting out the game against Intercity. Jules Koundé will likely play right back, with Ronald Araujo, Andreas Christensen and Alejandro Balde completing the backline.

Pedri, Gavi and Frenkie DeJong will likely start in midfield. Busquets played all 120 minutes against Intercity, Kessie also played but is yet to cement his place in the squad. Pablo Torre was brilliant and showed exactly why Xavi needs to put more faith in him, so it won't be a surprise to see him get some minutes at the Wanda.

The big question is who will deputize for Lewandowski. Xavi said different profiles have been tested, but it'll be between Ansu Fati, Ferran Torres and Memphis Depay, the last two of whom are yet to validate a place in the starting XI with the required performance post World Cup. Ansu Fati was way below his best against Espanyol but made up for it with a winner against Intercity in midweek.  It's likely he'll line up alongside Dembele and/or Raphinha, depending on if Xavi plays the typical 4-3-3 or deploy a 4-4-2 that was used to defeat Atleti the last time out.

Where and when are Atletico vs Barcelona playing?

Location: Madrid, Spain

Stadium: Civitas Metropolitano

Date: Sunday 8 January

Kick-off Time: 20:00 GMT / 15:00 ET / 12:00 PT

VAR: Alejandro José Hernandez Hernández

Referee: Jose Luis Munuera Montero

Even though Atlético Madrid are not having the best of seasons, the Metropolitano is never an easy place to go and the home side are fighting for consistency this season. Winning such a game could be a good place to start. Both Managers are under enormous pressure to deliver going into this tie involving a clash of styles. Barcelona will have to be at their best defensively and offensively to put three points between them and Real Madrid.

COPA DEL REY PREVIEW: INTERCITY VS BARCELONA

INTRODUCTION

Barcelona begin their Copa del Rey journey against a team with nothing to lose and so much to prove.

Barcelona are back in Cup action! After limping out of the competition last year following a 3-2 defeat at San Mames, the Catalans have made this edition a top priority, even though La Liga remains the most important title to grab. They'll travel to the Valencian region of Spain to lock horns with a third division side who's well below Barça Athletic in the standings.

CF Intercity play their football in the third tier of Spanish football and have had to overcome Cirbonero and Mirandés to reach this stage. Even though their home stadium is Estadio Antonio Solana in Alicante, This game will be played in Estadio José Rico Pérez, the home stadium of Hércules, which has a 29,500 capacity compared to Intercity's stadium of 2500, where their fans can come out in droves to see their team play the biggest game in their 6 year history. Intercity actually played Barcelona B at the start of December, and the points were shared in a goalless draw, but it would be fair to say that this will be a different level entirely for the home side.

INTERESTING STATS 

- Barcelona are the most successful side in the history of the competition, winning the trophy 31 times, the last being in 2020/21.

- Barcelona are also the side with the most finals appearances in the competition. They have made the showpiece event 42 times, the last being in 2020/21.

- Barcelona is only one of three teams to win the competition four years in a row. They are also the only side to do so in the post-World War II era.

- Intercity have never gotten past the last 32 round of the Copa Del Rey. In fact, this is their most successful campaign in the competition so far.

-This is the first meeting between both teams.

- There are no fewer than eight former Barcelona players in the current Intercity squad!

TEAM NEWS

Intercity

Intercity have not been in action since recording a 2-0 victory over Mirandes in the last round of the Copa del Rey, and they have not reported any fresh injury concerns.

 While they go into the clash against Barcelona as massive underdogs, there is also an opportunity for them to make a name for themselves.

Gustavo Siviero’s side are likely to set up in a 5-3-2 formation and will in all likelihood remain changed from their last game. 

Gaizka Campos should start in goal behind the back five of Guillem Jaime, Vadik Murria Soriano, Ivan Kecojevic, Rafa Galvez and Cristo Romero. The trio of Cristian Herrera, Miguel Mari and Xemi Fernandez should hold the fort in the middle of the park.

Oriol Soldevila Puig and Pol Roige should start up front.

Barcelona

Following the disappointing draw against Espanyol and ahead of the clash with Atleti, rotations are expected. Xavi has chosen to rest Pedri and Lewandowski for this one. 

Iñaki Pena was registered with the first team in time and will likely start in goal. Araujo has been confirmed to start alongside Eric Garcia, and we'll likely see Hector Bellerin line up at Right back and Alba at left back.

Massive rotations are expected in the midfield as well, with Kessie and Torre itching for a start.

Memphis Depay will likely have a chance to convince Xavi that he's ready to start games again. Fati, who was disappointing against Espanyol, might be given another chance, along with Raphinha, who was more impressive at the weekend.

When and where is the Intercity v Barcelona game?

Location : Alicante (Spain)

Stadium : José Rico Pérez

Date : Wednesday, January 4, 2023

Time : 21:00 (🇳🇬time)

Referee : Valentin Pizarro Gómez

VAR : None

CONCLUSION

Barcelona were largely disappointing over the weekend, but they have a chance to put that behind them. CF Intercity will have to play the game of their lives to get anything out of this one, and given the gulf in quality between the two sides, any result other than a convincing Barcelona win will be deemed a huge upset.