CD Tenerife vs Barcelona Match Preview
17th place Tenerife will host Spanish League leaders Barcelona at the Estadio Heliodoro Rodriguez Lopez in match-day 17 on Sunday, January 10.
Tenerife – It’s time to wake up
Newly promoted side Tenerife really haven’t got a fine time this season in La Liga. They are only a place above the relegation zone, with only 15 points out of 16 matches. The lowly club has gone 3 games without a win in the league, and just as they look to bounce back from such a poor form, they’re destined to face giants Barcelona in their next league encounter.
Logically, Tenerife enter this game with not much positives; they however are obliged to be the winning team this weekend, as anything less than a victory will be strictly unadvised for their own sake. The opponents of Barcelona in Sunday’s game were destroyed 3-0 by Real Madrid on the 26th of September 2009, but on this occasion, they would do well to set their minds on making an upset, instead of playing with respect for the Catalans.
Barcelona – Turning down speculations?
Since Barcelona disappointedly drew one all with Villarreal at the Camp Nou in La Liga on January 2 – before controversially losing 2-1 to Sevilla in the Copa del Rey – the majority of the public has started raising doubts over the European champions’ probabilities of finishing this season with full triumph.
Pep Guardiola himself admitted that despite inserting Lionel Messi and Dani Alves in midweek against Sevilla, there were some mistakes in his line-up and formation. Guardiola is however not regarded as the coach who makes wrong decisions; nevertheless, such a confession from the manager unquestionably shows a sign of weakness from his side.
Fortunately, his next game is against a miserable Tenerife club, who are yet to enjoy their moments in the Primera Liga; but then, the fact that Barcelona will play away from home is more or less an obstacle for the Catalans.
Despite this verity, Barcelona fans are anticipating a harsh conquest from their stars, and for sure, this weekend will be the perfect opportunity for Barca to eclipse their critics with a superb final result.
Dissatisfying will therefore be the last thing Pep Guardiola will want to see his boys doing on the field this Sunday, for another winless encounter might add some weight the anger of his supporters – and hence, increase the pressure on his boys.
