FC Barcelona to go in the clash without Lionel Messi
Barcelona currently have a 5-point lead at the top of the La Liga table with an additional game, but things could go less smoothly for them as a reason of their match this Saturday at the Camp Nou.
Fortunately for them, archrivals Real Madrid also have a strong challenge ahead of them against Valencia this weekend, and the Blaugrana can only wish the worst for their league contenders; should they take advantage of the Barcelona vs Espanyol game.
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Once again, this will be an encounter which will certainly glue millions of football lovers to their sits only to get entertained, but then, it is a fact that a football game’s entertainment also lies in its final result.
Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola could go ahead of this clash with confidence and determination; however, he might find the situation harder than expected, following the temporary loss of his star player Lionel Messi.
Lionel Messi scored a wonder free-kick on Wednesday evening in Barcelona’s Champions League match against Dynamo Kiev in Ukraine, but unfortunately, he suffered an ankle injury subsequent to unnecessary and dreadful tackles from the Ukrainian giants.
Lionel Messi is then expected to miss this weekend’s Barcelona vs Espanyol clash at the Camp Nou, and moreover, he could miss Barcelona’s FIFA Club World Cup’s campaign in the UAE.
Coach Guardiola should then gather the rest of his side’s forces to make the best weapon out of it, with the intention of overwhelming his visitors in Saturday’s second La Liga game.
Espanyol to benefit from their chances
In a way, Espanyol could take advantage of Lionel Messi’s exclusion from the match to shape things in their favor.
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Espanyol currently lie in 14th position in La Liga’s standings with only 13 points out of 13 games played. The Catalan struggling side were heavily beaten 3-0 by Real Madrid on match-day 2 of the league; but despite this fact, they were able to avoid defeats against Villarreal and Sevilla.
In fact, they could also resist the Kings of Europe this Saturday; as the league leaders will probably lack of speed and fire on their right flank.
In addition to this, Espanyol could have their hopes boosted by the fact that Barcelona have kept only 2 clean sheets in their last 7 league games; and most at times, the goals conceded by Barca’s defense were allowed through incomprehensible mistakes.
Barcelona, Espanyol, the past
Previous league meetings between both sides truly show balanced results, but this time, with an “All New” FC Barcelona side, the outcome of this fixture remains unpredictable.
Below, we take a look at the head-to-head between FC Barcelona and Espanyol, since January 13 2007.
21-02-2009: Barcelona 1 - 2 Espanyol
27-09-2008: Espanyol 1 - 2 Barcelona
19-04-2008: Barcelona 0 - 0 Espanyol
01-12-2007: Espanyol 1 - 1 Barcelona
09-06-2007: Barcelona 2 - 2 Espanyol
13-01-2007: Espanyol 3 - 1 Barcelona
