Ilkay Gundogan and Raphinha will return to the Barcelona starting lineup against Napoli at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium on Wednesday.
Barcelona will aim to take a step closer to the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals when they lock horns with Napoli at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in the first leg of the Round of 16 on Wednesday night. And Xavi Hernandez has a new issue to deal with ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
The former Spanish international is sweating over the fitness of Ronald Araujo and Pedri. The duo picked up knocks this past weekend against Celta Vigo. Meanwhile, Sergi Roberto (Achilles), Alejandro Balde (hamstring), Marcos Alonso (back), Gavi (ACL), Ferran Torres (thigh), and Joao Felix (ankle) remain on the sidelines.
Xavi did not discuss any team news updates during his pre-match press conference. Instead, he spoke about the opportunities that beckon a few players against Napoli, including Pedri and Frenkie de Jong.
The Barcelona boss said, “For Lewandowski, for Frenkie, for Pedri, it’s a perfect stage to show their talent, their personality. For me as a coach as well. Robert is a leader, he has shown again what he is. The words of Frenkie de Jong? I understand Frenkie perfectly, any footballer suffers injustice. For me he is fundamental, I think he is a player for many years to come. He is a key player.”
“We don’t blame the media for the results, but it is true that sometimes you feel injustice when they say things that are not true. In this sense, the footballers take it out on themselves. But we have to play better, compete better. We understand that, but there are other things that are unfair.”
Lewandowski scored in the win over Celta Vigo this past weekend and will lead the line for Barcelona against Napoli. Vitor Roque should retain his spot in the final third, making his UEFA Champions League debut for the Blaugrana. Raphinha will likely complete the numbers in the final third, replacing Lamine Yamal.
As for the midfield unit, Ilkay Gundogan will likely replace Andreas Christensen as the holding midfielder. The experienced midfielder will join Frenkie de Jong and Pedri in the middle of the park. Meanwhile, Araujo’s doubtful status means Pau Cubarsi will feature alongside Inigo Martinez, Jules Kounde, and Joao Cancelo in the backline, which will protect Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
Predicted Barcelona XI: ter Stegen; Kounde, Cubarsi, Martinez, Cancelo; de Jong, Gundogan, Pedri; Raphina, Lewandowski, Roque
