Catalan giants look to stay top of La Liga with victory
Barcelona travel to plucky Eibar on Saturday hoping they can remain top of La Liga by earning three points.
Luis Enrique's men face Eibar this weekend before crucial fixtures with Manchester City and Real Madrid which could see them go clear at the top of La Liga.
They are currently a point clear of Carlo Ancelotti's side, but back-to-back wins could see them take a four point lead, with Atletico Madrid seven points further behind.
A run of four consecutive wins in all competitions has raised expectations around the club, but the players are not taking anything for granted.
Despite seeing their form take a nosedive after seven consecutive losses, Eibar have exceeded expectations in their first season in the Spanish top flight. Midfielder Jon Errasti thinks his side have nothing to lose.
"We just think the game against them is a final for us and we can not think beyond," Errasti said.
Team news
Barca will be without the injured Busquets and the suspended Alves and Alba for Saturday's game at Basque club Eibar.
"These things happen over the course of a season," Enrique said.
"We have been a team that has used a lot of players up to now. Although Sergio's absence is an important one we have the position well covered.
"We will try to do what we always do in attack and defence regardless of the players we use."
Javier Mascherano or Ivan Rakitic are likely to come in for Busquets in the holding midfield role, with Martin Montoya and Adriano covering for Alves and Alba respectively.
Dani Garcia will not be available in midfield for Eibar as he was sent off late on last time, meaning that he is suspended, while Didac Vila remains a doubt with a muscle strain that has kept him out for the last month.
Espanyol 0 - 0 Atletico Madrid
After falling further behind Real Madrid and Barcelona, the reigning champions are in dire need of three points against Saturday's hosts
Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann has called on his team-mates to have fun when they visitEspanyol on Saturday.
With just one win in their last four Liga matches, champions Atletico have slipped to seven points behind leaders Barcelona.
Griezmann was suspended for Sunday's 1-1 home draw with the fourth-placed Valencia.
But returning to the frame for Saturday's road trip, Griezmann wants his team-mates to get back to enjoying themselves.
"After not being able to play last week due to suspension, I'm eager and excited to try help the team," Griezmann told Atletico's official website.
"The keys to the match against Espanyol will be, be strong at the back and at the front.
"And when we have the ball, try to combine to have fun, because in the end, it is a game and when we enjoy ourselves, we play very well."
Griezmann, speaking after winning Atletico's Liga player of the month for February, has already netted 14 goals in the league this season.
He is determined to beat his best of 16, achieved last year with Real Sociedad, and added: "I hope to improve my performance even more but I'm having fun on the field and you can see that.
"When I arrived here, I said that I wanted to improve my goal number and I'm working on it.
"I'm giving my best and I hope to exceed the 16 goals I scored last season."
That news is ominous for Espanyol, who have the worst defensive record of any team in the top half of the table.
The 10th-placed side have lost their last two and need forwards Sergio Garcia and Cristhian Stuani to rediscover their form.
The pair, who have scored nine Liga goals this season each, but have between them contributed just one goal in Espanyol's last five games.
Espanyol will hope that Atletico are distracted by their upcoming Champions League clash, though.
Diego Simeone's men trail Bayer Leverkusen 1-0 after the first leg of their last-16 clash. Atleti will host the return match on Tuesday.
Atletico have won five of their last six clashes against Espanyol. Four of those five victories have come with a clean sheet.
Tiago and Mario Suarez scored in the 2-0 success they posted in October but Espanyol will take solace from their triumph when Atletico last visited them, sealed by a Thibaut Courtois own goal.
No comments:
Post a Comment