Ilkay Gundogan will make his Barcelona debut against Getafe at Coliseum Alfonso Perez in the first match of the 2023/24 season.
Barcelona will look to kick-start the 2023/24 season strongly when they lock horns with Getafe at Coliseum Alfonso Perez on Sunday night. And Xavi Hernandez will have a near-full-strength squad at his disposal ahead of his side’s season-opening game.
Inigo Martinez is yet to regain full match fitness and will unlikely be available to start a game until the international break. In addition, Marcos Alonso will miss out, while Sergino Dest and Clement Lenglet do not feature in Barcelona’s plans.
But there is some good news, as the reigning La Liga champions have officially registered four players. These are Sergi Roberto, Ilkay Gundogan, Oriol Romeu, and Ez Abde. Meanwhile, Xavi addressed the news during his pre-match press conference, insisting the group remains focused on Sunday’s game.
The Barcelona boss said, “We are focused on tomorrow’s game. We are working to register players. We haven’t decided anything else, we are focused on tomorrow’s game.”
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“The club is working very hard. We are optimistic, we will try to register the majority of players. I am 90% sure that everyone will be registered for tomorrow. I know more or less the team that will start tomorrow.”
Gundogan’s registration means the former Manchester City captain will make his Barcelona debut on Sunday. But Oriol Romeu will miss out, with Frenkie de Jong and Pedri completing the midfield trifecta. However, the experienced Spanish midfielder should appear off the bench to make his bow.
Meanwhile, Gavi will reprise an advanced role in the final third, starting on the left flank on paper. But the midfield unit will transform into a diamond, depending on the game’s phase. As for the offensive unit, Robert Lewandowski will lead the line against Getafe, with Raphinha featuring on the left flank.
Finally, the defensive unit will have a familiar look, with Alejandro Balde and Jules Kounde being the full-backs. And Ronald Araujo and Andreas Christensen will form the central defensive pairing. Meanwhile, Marc-Andre ter Stegen will feature between the sticks on Sunday.
Predicted Barcelona XI: ter Stegen; Kounde, Araujo, Christensen, Balde; Pedri, de Jong, Gundogan; Raphinha, Lewandowski, Gavi
