Gavi, Bardghji start in a 4-2-3-1 – How Barcelona can line up against Espanyol
FC Barcelona will be aiming to bounce back to winning ways when they take on RCD Espanyol later today in La Liga.Having suffered a 0-2 loss to Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the UEFA Champions Le...
Gavi, Bardghji start in a 4-2-3-1 – How Barcelona can line up against Espanyol FC Barcelona will be aiming to bounce back to winning ways when they take on RCD Espanyol later today in La Liga. Having suffered a 0-2 loss to Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League earlier this week, the Catalans will be eager to correct course and build momentum ahead of Tuesday’s second leg. At the same time, they will also want to strengthen their grip at the top of the league standings, especially after yet another slip-up from Real Madrid, who drew 1-1 against Girona on Friday night.
Barcelona are currently six points clear of their bitter rivals, and a victory in the Catalan derby could see them take a major step towards retaining the La Liga crown. Despite that, there will be some degree of rotation with an eye on the Atletico clash, where they need to come back from two goals down. Frenkie de Jong is back in the squad after more than a month out, which will come as a timely boost for Barça.
However, Raphinha and Marc Bernal remain unavailable, along with Andreas Christensen. Given the situation, here’s how Hansi Flick could set his team up against Manolo Gonzalez’s Espanyol outfit tonight at the Spotify Camp Nou. Defence Joan Garcia was Barcelona’s hero in their previous meeting against Espanyol, putting on a goalkeeping masterclass.
He will be gunning for another victory against his former club. In defence, Pau Cubarsi is guaranteed to start, considering that he will miss the Atletico Madrid clash through suspension after his red card in the first leg. However, there will be a change of partners for the Spaniard, with Ronald Araujo in line to replace Gerard Martin, who will likely be given a rest.