Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha will start when Barcelona and Espanyol face off at Spotify Camp Nou on Saturday.
Barcelona will look to regain the top spot in La Liga when they welcome Espanyol to Spotify Camp Nou for Derbi Barceloni on Saturday afternoon. And Xavi Hernandez has his entire squad available for the latest league game this weekend.
The biggest news is that Robert Lewandowski is available after the dispute settlement court issued a precautionary measure against his suspension. The Polish striker was initially supposed to be out for three games after seeing red in the last La Liga game against Osasuna. But an official statement has confirmed that Lewandowski can play versus Espanyol on Saturday.
Apart from Lewandowski, Ronaldo Araujo is also available and part of the squad to take on Espanyol. And with Jules Kounde resuming training after his post-World Cup break, Barcelona will be at full strength this weekend. And Xavi Hernandez spoke about the decision on Lewandowski during his pre-match press conference.
The Barcelona boss said (h/t Barca Universal), “We found out when the training session was over. We prepared for the game with the idea that we couldn’t count on him. It’s not the best timing but we are very happy that he can play. He was also surprised by the timing. We have been training differently these weeks, thinking that we were not counting on him.”
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Xavi also provided an update on Araujo, saying, “When he was there with the Uruguayan national team, we talked and had communication with the coach. In the end, the player’s feelings decide, he has told us that he is very well, we have to slow him down a bit and we will be cautious. In principle, he won’t start, but he could have minutes.”
With Araujo unlikely to start and Kounde resuming training on Wednesday, Andreas Christensen and Eric Garcia should form the central defensive partnership, even though the latter has felt some discomfort lately. Jordi Alba and Alejandro Balde should be the full-backs, with Marc-Andre ter Stegen taking his place between the sticks.
As for the midfield unit, Sergio Busquets should sit at the base of the trifecta. And Frenkie de Jong and Pedri should be the two box-to-box midfielders for the hosts. So Gavi will likely be on the bench against Espanyol this weekend.
Lewandowski’s availability means he should spearhead the Barcelona attack against Espanyol. Despite Xavi’s comments, there is no way he will leave out the veteran striker. Finally, Ousmane Dembele and Raphinha should complete the offensive unit on Saturday.
Predicted Barcelona XI: ter Stegen; Balde, Christensen, Eric Garcia, Alba; Pedri, Busquets, de Jong; Raphinha, Lewandowski, Dembele
