Things are not quiet at Barcelona at the moment despite their win over Villarreal last weekend. Los Blaugranas were coming off a 2-2 draw against Atletico Madrid before their huge win at Estadio de la Ceramica, but they still remain four points behind Real Madrid in the title race. It must be acknowledged that Barcelona have also drawn three of their last five league matches, including two disappointing draws against Celta de Vigo and Sevilla. They could’ve easily lost against Celta, but Nolito missed a sitter on stoppage time that could’ve changed the course of the game. The lone thing that is clear is that Barcelona are not playing at a high level right now despite going undefeated in their last eight Liga matches (W5, D3). They need to turn things around before it’s too late. Fortunately for them, they will play at home in this contest. Los Blaugranas own a W15, D2 mark at home.
Team News
Ousmane Dembele (thigh) and Frenkie de Jong (calf) are ruled out. So it Jean-Clair Todibo, who returned from his loan spell at Schalke 04 but can’t play for Los Blaugranas.
Samuel Umtiti (knee) has been listed as doubtful. If he misses this game, then Barca will be incredibly thin when it comes to their defensive depth. Junior Firpo (hip) is also listed as doubtful.
Espanyol
Barcelona are very much alive in the title race, but the same can t be said about Espanyol. Los Pericos currently sit dead last in the Liga standings with 24 points and even if they were to win here, they wouldn t leave last place. Right now, they are 11 points away from safety with four games left in the schedule so this is a must-win game for them. A defeat here, or a negative combination of results going against them, and Espanyol would get relegated from La Liga ahead of the 2020-21 season. Their prospects of securing a positive result in this contest do not look strong. Aside from being the worst team in the league this season, Espanyol have also been extremely weak on the road. Los Pericos are W3, D4, L10 away from home, where they have dropped four of their last five matches. It seems they simply lack enough weapons to pull the upset at Camp Nou.
Team News
Star forward Jonathan Calleri will be suspended for this match.
Pipa has been listed as doubtful due to injury. However, he is very unlikely to feature here.
Key Factors to Consider
