A round-up of the latest Barcelona news and rumors
Final session before return to action at the Estadi Olímpic - FC Barcelona
The return of football to the Estadi Olímpic is getting ever nearer with Saturday seeing the visit of Villarreal to the stadium in La Liga, a must win game for the blaugranes if they are to remain in contention for the battle for the La Liga title.
PREVIEW | FC Barcelona v Villarreal - FC Barcelona
Following the massive disappointment of crashing out of the Copa del Rey against Athletic Club on Wednesday, it's time for FC Barcelona to pick themselves up and get back to work on one of the two trophies that they still have in their sights this seasons: La Liga.
The Lowdown on Villarreal CF - FC Barcelona
Barça take on Villarreal in the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys on Saturday, kick off 6.30pm CET, with Barça needing a win to keep themselves in contention for the league title whilst the visitors need points to move themselves away from the relegation zone.
Xavi: 'We need our fans' - FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona are finally back at Montjuïc for the first time in 38 days, and the visitors are Villarreal. "We are happy to be back at home, with our people" said coach Xavi Hernández the day before, admitting that in this game he needs to see a reaction after the defeat to Athletic in the cup.
FC Barcelona back at Montjuïc... 38 days later - FC Barcelona
This Saturday at 6.30pm CET, FC Barcelona entertain Villarreal at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys. It's been 38 days since the last home fixture, after the team went to the Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia, played away from home in all three rounds of the Copa del Rey, travelled for two league fixtures at Las Palmas and Real Betis, and also went to Las Vegas to play a friendly with Club America.
Agreement to extend Marta Torrejón's contract until 2025 - FC Barcelona
Barça and Marta Torrejón have reached an agreement to extend the second captain's contract for another season until 30 June 2025. The defender is second on the all time list of appearances for Barça Women and has 24 trophies to her name as a Barça player.
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How to watch on TV: ESPN Deportes (USA), Viaplay Sports 2 (UK), SuperSport (Nigeria), Sports18 (India), TSN 4 (Canada), Not Available (Spain), others
How to watch online: ESPN+ (USA), LaLigaTV (UK), DAZN (Spain), others
Following a painful and emotionally taxing Copa del Rey exit away to Athletic Bilbao in midweek, Barcelona continue the madness of January with their eighth game this month and their first at home as the Catalans welcome Villarreal for a big La Liga clash at the Montjuïc Olympic Stadium on Saturday evening.
Barça come into this one with a chance to play their first match of 2024 in front of the home fans after nearly 40 days away from the crowd in the Catalan capital, with all three of their Copa del Rey games, both of their La Liga encounters and the two Spanish Super Cup clashes all played either on the road or at a neutral site in a span of 21 crazy days to begin the new year.
January is unforgiving in Spain, and it usually separates the good teams from the great ones. The amount of games in quick succession takes a serious toll, and the Cup ties increase the pressure and the mental fatigue of every match while injuries are almost inevitable due to the schedule.
Barça have been bit hard by the injury bug again and are out of two competitions already, and the final four months of the season will be a monster test for Xavi Hernández and his players as the Blaugrana try to rescue what has been a very difficult campaign so far.
They remain somewhat in the vicinity of leaders Real Madrid and Girona, but any slip-up will effectively end their title hopes in the league. The Champions League seems too distant of a target even if they can get past Napoli in the Round of 16, so La Liga is the only somewhat realistic chance of a trophy in 2023-24.
The next month offers a bunch of winnable games, but the squad is tired and missing key pieces and will need to show a lot of fighting spirit to continually bounce back and stay close to the top of the table. Saturday offers a very tough test in the Yellow Submarine, who have recovered from a disastrous start by sacking Quique Setién and replacing him with veteran Spanish manager Marcelino García Toral, who himself bounced back from a very short stint in France and has done a solid job so far.
But injuries to key players have also impacted Villarreal, who are missing in essence their entire starting back four which has led to very poor defensive performances despite having a manager in Marcelino that prides himself in having solid, well-organized teams who make defending a priority.
They’ve won only one of their last seven in La Liga and conceded at least three goals in three straight league games on the road, and one or two more bad results in succession will sound real alarm bells as the relegation fears grow. A good result in Barcelona is always a huge confidence boost for any team fighting to avoid the drop or the threat of it, and Villarreal know how vulnerable Barça will be after playing 120 minutes on Wednesday and especially how poorly they’ve defended all season.
The imminent return of Marc-André ter Stegen will help matters at the back, but Iñaki Peña is badly struggling and the players in front of him are either not protected well enough in certain circumstances or making basic mistakes that compromise the entire system in key moments. They’ve conceded a lot of early goals and have had to come from behind seemingly every other game, which creates unnecessary desperation and pressure for a team that under Xavi needs to establish a rhythm and score first to have control of a game.
Villarreal under Marcelino are well-coached to alternate moments of high pressing and low blocks, but they might choose to sit back for most of the evening and frustrate Barça to hit them on the counter. That has been a very effective tactic against Xavi’s team, and it could prove fatal if the Blaugrana don’t score early themselves.
This is a game Barça badly need if they want to have any chance to win La Liga. This is a game Villarreal badly need if they want to avoid a dangerous dance with the drop. It’ll be full of tension and probably full of bad defensive moments and goals for both sides, which might make this quite a lot of fun.
Let’s dance.
POSSIBLE LINEUPS
Barcelona (4-3-3): Peña; Kounde, Christensen, Cubarsí, Cancelo; Fermín, De Jong, Roberto; Ferran, Lewandowski, Félix
Barça are tired and injured and can’t defend and Villarreal badly need a result but also can’t defend. Everything points to a high-scoring draw, but I’ll still bet on the good guys: 3-2 Barça.
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Barcelona midfielder Gavi has posted an update on social media as he continues on the long road to recovery after ACL surgery.
The teenager is not expected to return until next season after suffering a serious knee injury, and his loss has been a huge blow for Barcelona.
We’ve not seen too much of Gavi since, although he has been spotted hobbling around on crutches in recent weeks.
The Spain international has now posted an update which shows him in the gym and looking in pretty good spirits.
If you look closely you can just about see the scar on his right knee, the result of the surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
Gavi Instagram
Gavi’s choice of music is also fairly interesting.
The lyrics “I get knocked down, but I get up again. You’re never gonna keep me down,” suggest he’s certainly not lacking for motivation right now despite the huge injury setback.
Get well soon, Gavi!
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A round-up of the latest Barcelona news and rumors
Recovery session at the Ciutat Esportiva - FC Barcelona
Time to move on from the disappointment of going out of the Copa del Rey and Barça were back at work today for a recovery session at the Ciutat Esportiva, and to start preparations for Saturday's game against Villarreal (kick-off 6.30pm).
When and where to watch FC Barcelona v Villarreal - FC Barcelona
LaLiga returns to the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, as Barça play at home in front of the fans for the first time since 20 December last year. Xavi Hernández' side host Villarreal for the LaLiga matchday 22 fixture, with three points the target to keep up the pressure.
Diario Sport reckon that “unless there’s a catastophe” then Xavi will stay until the end of the season.
Joan Laporta and Co. want the team to continue to fight in the league and beat Napoli in the Champions League and will then make a decision on Xavi in the summer.
Xavi still has some credit, after winning La Liga last season, and Laporta is not thought to be keen on changing coach midway through the season.
Barca are expecting the coach to secure at least second spot in the table, and a place in the Spanish Super Cup, which brings with it an extra €5m.
Xavi’s side currently sit third in the table after 20 games played, eight points behind leaders Girona and seven behind Real Madrid.
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Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Barça look to stay alive in the title race with a tough test at home
After a heartbreaking Copa del Rey exit against Athletic Bilbao in the Basque Country, Barcelona are right back in action on Saturday in the penultimate match of a very busy January as the Catalans welcome struggling Villarreal for a crucial La Liga clash at the Montjuïc Olympic Stadium.
Barça played 120 minutes of physically and emotionally taxing football and suffered a painful defeat that ended their best chance to win a trophy this season, and now the challenge is to quickly bounce back and turn their attentions to La Liga for the next couple of weeks.
They’re not out of the title race just yet and have a run of winnable games over the next month, but the Catalans cannot afford to drop any points if they want to stay close to Real Madrid and Girona. Villarreal are having a very difficult season and are desperate for a change in fortune to escape the threat of relegation, and they know Barça are vulnerable and tired and will be looking to cause a big upset this weekend.
Here’s how we think Xavi Hernández will line up his troops for Saturday’s battle.
Defense
Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images
After playing 120 minutes and having to travel back from the Basque Country, it is really hard to know who will be starting for the Blaugrana with such a short turnaround. Only the coaching and medical staffs have access to the vast fitness level data available from each player, and Xavi will rely on those numbers as well as the recent run of games to decide the most physically apt XI this weekend.
So this is our best guess (BIG emphasis on GUESS): with Ronald Araujo clearly struggling with a knee injury against Athletic it would be wise to rest the Uruguayan for this one, allowing Pau Cubarsí to continue his breakout month alongside Jules Kounde at right-back and Andreas Christensen as Cubarsí’s partner in the middle.
Christensen, like Ronald, is also playing through injury but was subbed off early against Athletic while Araujo remained in the game even through extra time, which could be an indication that Xavi has already made up his mind about sitting Araujo this weekend.
Alejandro Balde’s injury means João Cancelo probably returns at left-back as it seemed as though Xavi chose to not risk the Portuguese at San Mamés after Balde’s early exit. Héctor Fort will be ready to step in if Cancelo is not quite ready to start yet, with the youngster playing very well and for over 90 minutes on Wednesday.
Midfield
Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images
After playing 100 minutes in Bilbao it would be a huge risk to start Pedri again with such a short turnaround, with the magician best served to be a super sub against Villarreal for the final 30-35 minutes of the game.
Both Frenkie de Jong and Ilkay Gündogan looked exhausted at the end of the Bilbao match, but it would be a surprise to see all three midfield starters benched for this one. Because De Jong has consistently been one of the most physically reliable players in the squad since his arrival we think Gündogan will be the one moving to the bench, with Sergi Roberto and Fermín López completing the midfield with Frenkie at the base.
Xavi could easily start Gündogan as the pivot and give De Jong a much-needed rest as well, but the biggest surprise would definitely be Oriol Romeu starting.
Attack
Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images
Lamine Yamal had a couple of big misses in the second half against Athletic but also scored a spectacular goal early in the game, and the 16-year-old once again provided a glimpse of his limitless potential. But he also played 105 minutes and looked very tired when he came off, and having already played all 90 minutes away to Real Betis it would be a shock to see the youngster starting three times in six days.
A rest for Yamal is the only sensible choice, which would mean Ferran Torres moving to the right wing and a rare start this month for João Félix on the left. Robert Lewandowski has been subbed off twice in a row in the middle of the second half, and with both Marc Guiu and Vitor Roque earning real minutes in recent games it seems as though the leash is becoming shorter and shorter for the Pole even if he remains the starter for this one.
Possible XI: Peña; Kounde, Cubarsí, Christensen, Cancelo; Fermín, De Jong, Roberto; Ferran, Lewandowski, Félix (4-3-3)
How do you think Barcelona should line up against Villarreal? Let us know your thoughts, predictions and teams in the comments below!
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Mundo Deportivo are reporting that Yamal was so upset afterwards he was “crying his eyes out” and was consoled by Joan Laporta.
The Barca president gave him a hug and pointed out he still has his whole career ahead of him to win titles.
Diario Sport have a similar story about Yamal being emotional afterwards due to the opportunities he failed to put away.
Xavi and Ronald Araujo both insisted afterwards that Yamal was absolutely not to blame at all and made it clear that he’s the club’s great big hope for the future.
Barcelona head to Villarreal next and it will be interesting to see if Yamal continues in the starting XI for the third game in a row.
The teenager played a starring role against Betis last time out in La Liga, but Xavi does have other fresher options available in attack.
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Gavi Instagram
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Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images
