Barcelona will look to bounce back from their Champions League disappointment when they host Celta Vigo La Liga at Spotify Camp Nou.
Barcelona have been in terrific form in La Liga this season and boast a near-perfect domestic record. The Catalan giants have won six league games in a row since their stalemate with Rayo Vallecano on the opening weekend. They have kept clean sheets in their last five games and have found the back of the net a whopping 19 times this season.
A first-half Robert Lewandowski goal proved to be the difference as Barcelona edged lowly RCD Mallorca 1-0 last weekend. Meanwhile, Real Madrid surprisingly dropped points against ten-man Osasuna, a result that saw Barcelona return to the top of the table for the first time since Quique Setien was in charge, 844 days ago to be precise, albeit on goal difference.
While they have established their dominance in the league, back-to-back Champions League setbacks against Bayern Munich and Inter Milan have put their European ambitions in peril.
Hakan Calhanoglu’s long-range strike was enough to condemn Barcelona to a defeat at San Siro. Xavi Hernandez’s men will be chomping at the bit for revenge when Inter make the trip to Camp Nou for the reverse fixture. But first, Barcelona have some home business to attend to with an erratic Celta Vigo coming for a visit.
El VAR en el Inter-Barcelona:
✅ Mano de Ansu Fati y gol anulado a Pedri.
❌ Mano de Dumfries y penal no sancionado al Barça.Increíble. pic.twitter.com/jVaEC9vbY5
— Mati (@matiasm_02) October 4, 2022
Celta Vigo have had a mixed start to their La Liga season, having won three of their first seven games this season (D1 L3). So they are sitting perfectly in the middle of the table. Given that they finished 11th in last season, a push into the top half is certainly in their annual targets. Eduardo ‘Chacho’ Coudet’s side are as exciting as they are unpredictable.
They began the campaign with a 2-2 draw with Espanyol, then suffered a 4-1 thumping by Real Madrid, before registering back-to-back wins against Girona and Cadiz with clean sheets. That was followed by crushing defeats at the hands of Atletico Madrid and Valencia. But Celta Vigo impressed by upsetting high-flying Real Betis last time out.
Team News & Tactics
Barcelona
Jules Kounde and Ronald Araujo were already sidelined for the next few weeks after picking up muscle injuries in the recent international break. To make things worse, Andreas Christensen sustained a ligament injury against Inter and is expected to miss the rest of October.
Franck Kessie joined the former in the treatment room after suffering a hamstring injury in the UCL game. So he is not on the squad list. Frenkie de Jong has missed the past two games but has been cleared to make the squad. His compatriot, Memphis Depay, though, is still ruled out.
The squad for #BarçaCelta! pic.twitter.com/rWE1mMTs8J
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) October 8, 2022
To say there’s a lot riding on next Wednesday’s Champions League game against Inter is an understatement. So expect Xavi Hernandez to ring in a few changes for this weekend’s contest against Celta Vigo.
Ansu Fati is pushing for a return to the starting eleven. Raphinha is likely to settle for a place on the bench, paving the way for Fati to return to the side and form Barcelona’s attacking trifecta alongside Ousmane Dembele and Robert Lewandowski. Lewandowski remains the most potent goal threat for Barcelona and enters Sunday’s contest looking to add to his tally of nine league goals this season.
Elsewhere in defence, Marcos Alonso is set to drop out from the side that started the midweek game. Young Alejandro Balde will likely operate in the left-back slot, whereas Sergi Roberto will retain his spot on the opposite flank.
An injury crisis means Gerard Pique will get a rare start at the heart of Barcelona’s backline alongside Eric Garcia. Meanwhile the classic midfield three of Gavi, Sergio Busquets, and Pedri should line up in front of them. De Jong is a viable option off the bench. Meanwhile, Marc-Andre ter Stegen will guard the goal for the hosts.
Predicted Lineup (4-3-3): ter Stegen; Roberto, Pique, Garcia, Balde; Gavi, Busquets, Pedri; Fati, Lewandowski, Dembele
Celta Vigo
Unlike his counterpart in the Barcelona dugout, Celta Vigo boss Eduardo Coudet practically has a clean bill of health. He has no first-team injury problems to deal with while having had a full week of rest heading into this fixture.
Coudet has more than often not opted for a 4-1-3-2 system since his arrival at Celta and will set up the visitors in the same formation here. Their style of play is possession-based, with short passing encouraged in midfield and among the back four, and a fairly high defensive line.
📋✈️💙
22 celestes que viajan con un 𝐒𝐔𝐄𝐍̃𝐎#BarçaCelta #LaLiga pic.twitter.com/9nOWnk75PD
— RC Celta (@RCCelta) October 8, 2022
Francisco Beltran is a vital cog of the system as he forms a single pivot in midfield. Stationed just in front of the back four, he offers quick passing options in the build-up as well as stopping counter-attacks in defence. He will be supported by Gabriel Veiga, while Augusto Solari and Oscar Rodriguez will take up the attacking half-space positions and look to provide the forward thrust for the visitors.
Agustin Marchesin is a certain starter in between the sticks for the Galician outfit, and he could have his hands full on Sunday. Hugo Mallo and Javi Galan ought to line up as the full-backs on the right and left sides, respectively. Joseph Aidoo and Unai Nunez will form the central defensive partnership that will be charged with keeping Robert Lewandowski and co. at bay.
Celta Vigo will once again be relying on Iago Aspas, who, as ever, remains their biggest goal threat. Jorgen Larsen will partner the veteran up top as they look to cause problems to the Barcelona defence.
Predicted Lineup (4-1-3-2): Marchesin; Mallo, Aidoo, Nunez, Galan; Beltran; Rodriguez, Veiga, Solari; Aspas, Larsen
Key Stats
- Barcelona have won their last six La Liga matches and have kept a clean sheet in their last five league games in a row.
- The hosts are undefeated in 18 of their last 20 home games against Celta Vigo in all competitions.
- However, Barcelona would be foolish to overlook Celta Vigo this weekend, as they have only won two of their past five meetings with Celta (D2, L1).
- Barcelona have not won back-to-back matches against Celta Vigo since doing the double over them in the 2013/14 campaign when Xavi was still in the playing squad.
- The visitors have lost three of the last four away matches.
Player to Watch
Iago Aspas
Iago Aspas is one of the most underrated strikers of his generation, and his contributions to La Liga are spoken about enough. He has scored 121 goals over the last seven seasons in Spain’s top flight and has never dropped below the 14-goal mark, which is incredible while playing a perennial underdog team. Aspas has saved his boyhood club, Celta Vigo, countless times from relegation and will surely go down as the most influential player in their history.
The 35-year-old has shown no real signs of slowing down. Aspas already has five goals in the new season, placing him third in the season scoring charts. The talismanic forward also boasts a prolific record against Barcelona, netting ten goals in his last 13 appearances against them. Indeed, Celta Vigo will be relying heavily on Aspas to add to his tally and help them cause a major upset this weekend.
Prediction
Barcelona 3-2 Celta Vigo
The Blaugrana may have been in excellent defensive form and are yet to concede at Camp Nou this year. But Barcelona have struggled to keep a clean sheet against Celta Vigo recently, with no shut outs in their last three meetings with the Galician outfit, who prefer to hold the ball and work it up the pitch at their leisure.
Celta Vigo are not a team to be taken lightly. The visitors are perfectly capable of pulling off an upset on their day and have troubled their Catalan opponents in the past. They are not the type of team that just looks to deploy a deep block and play for a draw against superior opponents. That has left them severely vulnerable at the back, with only four sides conceding more goals than them in La Liga this season.
Barcelona are the better team on paper and should be able to win this game. But the visitors are certainly capable of asking some questions of their own with the quality they have on their roster against a rotated and injury-ravaged Barcelona side, especially with Iago Aspas back fit.
