A matter of points and shape
FC Barcelona will make their come back as the leaders of the league table with 39 points – also 18 points ahead of 9th place Villarreal, and two points in front of archrivals Real Madrid.
The Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola will still need to take things pretty delicately, following the fragile condition they currently find theirselves in. So far, the Catalans are without a domestic loss this season, but there were times when it looked like their form’s foundation was getting weaker.
In spite of everything, Barca are still in control, but their exciting encounter this Saturday at home against the Yellow Submarines will partly determine whether they will do well in pleasing their fans till match-day 38 of La Liga.
As for Villarreal, they will return fresh from a 2-0 victory over Racing Santander, which they had on December 20. Two weeks of rest have made them stronger for the remaining of their journey in the league, as they look forward to increasing their amount of points in the competition.
Villarreal won 6 games, drawn 3, and lost 6 in 15 matches, and this unsatisfying record has only awarded them 21 points. Hence, they simply sit a place above the table’s second half, and their chances of playing in Europe don’t seem to raise fast enough to frighten La Liga’s top teams this season.
Barcelona – A positive run against big sides
The Camp Nou owners presently possess a nice reputation against other potent La Liga clubs, having kept a clean sheet in most of their big league battles. With victories over Real Madrid and Espanyol in some ways for Barcelona, a goalless draw against Valencia was the less productive result for the Blaugrana fans; the Yellow submarines can however attempt to cause them an upset, which could affect the standings at the top of La Liga table.
Acceptably, one might refuse to believe that disappointing Pep Guardiola’s Barca at the Camp Nou in such an important encounter is possible; yet, considering the “lack of training” in recent days for the Spanish champions, anything could occur.
Villarreal – Going for the best?
Villarreal lost 2-0 to Los Blancos at the Estadio El Madrigal in September 2009, and as Barcelona and Real Madrid are said to have almost the same physical strength, it is hard to assess the outcome of their game against Barcelona away from home this weekend.
The Yellow Submarines could have their moral boosted ahead of their challenge in Cataluña by remembering the deep pressure Espanyol were able to inflict on their city rivals on December 12. Barcelona actually won this game controversially, subsequent to a highly debatable penalty scored by Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Nonetheless, Espanyol had nothing to be ashamed of, as they still fought with a lot of character. Obviously, Villarreal could do the same against the FIFA Club World Cup winners, and with a little bit less mistakes, and a better composition, favor could be theirs at everybody’s surprise.
Will they find their target on Saturday evening? This is exactly what everyone wants to know, but realistically, the answer will only be unveiled after the end of proceedings…
Players to watch
Prolific goal scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic is expected to lead the attack for the European giants, sustained by Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta, and Carlos Puyol behind. Lionel Messi remains a doubt for this weekend.
Villarreal will be advised to play a team game, even if they choose to place a part of their reliability on their skillful keeper Diego Lopez, who will surely be the main man in trouble of seeing the ball crossing his vulnerable goal line.
