Barcelona make their long-awaited return to the Greatest Stadium on Earth this weekend as the Catalans welcome historic rivals Athletic Club for the first La Liga match at the Spotify Camp Nou in 909 days.
We have all waited a very long time for this, and it’s finally here. It’ll be a few years before the stadium’s renovation is fully complete, but 45,000 fans will enter Barça’s iconic stadium looking to push them to victory against a tough and talented team who would love nothing more than to spoil
Barça’s return home.
Here’s how we think Hansi Flick will line up his troops for Saturday’s battle:
Defense
There are quite a few good news on the injury front for this one after months of almost entirely bad news, and the first is in goal: Joan Garcia is finally back after almost two months out since undergoing surgery on his knee, and he’s expected to reclaim the number one spot on Saturday.
Some more good news at the back: Jules Kounde played for France during the international break after missing Barça’s last match with a slight muscle issue, but the right-back will return to his usual spot and is expected to match up against Nico Williams, whom Kounde dominated at Montjuïc last season.
Kounde’s return will move Eric Garcia back to his favorite position at center-back, most likely alongside Pau Cubarsí with Ronald Araujo and Andreas Christensen on the bench for this one. Alejandro Balde has had a disappointing season so far, but will likely keep his place as Flick continues to show confidence in the left-back.
Midfield
Frenkie de Jong’s suspension and Pedri’s absence due to injury have left the midfield extremely thin, and Marc Casadó’s withdrawal during warm-ups against Celta Vigo two weeks ago made the prospects even scarier ahead of this one. But Casadó has recovered from a minor groin issue and is expected to start, with Dani Olmo and Fermín López completing the midfield trio.
Attack
Lamine Yamal was once again the subject of a public war of words between Barça and the national team, but the teenager should be ready to go for this one after missing the international window for undergoing treatment for his ongoing pubalgia issue. He’ll likely start unless Flick decides to be careful ahead of a monster trip to Stamford Bridge in the Champions League in midweek, in which case Roony Bardghji would start on the right wing.
Raphinha will make his long-awaited return after almost two months out with a hamstring injury, but the Brazilian won’t be rushed back into the XI and will most likely come off the bench in this one. That would mean another start on the left for the in-form Marcus Rashford, with Robert Lewandowski leading the line after a hat-trick in Barça’s last game and a goal and two assists for Poland during the international break.
Possible XI: Garcia; Kounde, Cubarsí, Eric, Balde; Fermín, Casadó, Olmo; Yamal, Lewandowski, Rashford (4-3-3)
How do you think Barcelona should line up against Athletic? Let us know your thoughts, predictions and teams in the comments below!
