Barcelona vs Valencia: La Liga Match Preview, Predicted Line-ups and Fantasy XI

Barcelona vs Valencia: Barcelona will look to ride the wave of the Copa del Rey semi final first leg victory over Real Madrid when they host La Liga strugglers Valencia on Sunday.

Match Details:

• Location: Barcelona, Spain
• Stadium: Camp Nou
• Date: Sunday 5 March
• Kick-off Time: 15:15 GMT / 10:15 ET / 07:15 PT
• Referee: Javier Alberola Rojas

Barcelona vs Valencia: Match Preview:

Eder Militao's own goal gave Xavi's side victory and kept them on course for a domestic treble having already won the Supercopa de Espana in January.

Barça are seven points clear at the top of Spain's top flight and 36 ahead of next challengers Valencia. The club is in disarray and a shadow of the side that won La Liga and reached consecutive Champions League finals in the 2000s.

Team News:

Barcelona:

Manager Xavi will not be on the sidelines as he is suspended following a booking for touchline protestations in the loss at Almeria. Assistants Oscar Hernandez and Sergio Alegre will take charge at the weekend.

let the weekend of races begin 🏎️ pic.twitter.com/SAYh4ljiXp

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) March 4, 2023

Midfielder Gavi will also not be available due to an accumulation of yellow cards. Robert Lewandowski missed the Clasico defeat with a hamstring strain and likely won't be available on Sunday. That could see Ferran Torres played in a central role again while Ansu Fati could play out wide.

Valencia:

Valencia managed to break a run of six consecutive defeats – five coming in La Liga – in their most recent outing when they beat Real Sociedad 1-0.

Midfielder Nico is out for a few months with a knee injury and wouldn't have been able to play against his parent club anyway, while top sorer Edinson Cavani also sidelined.

20-year-old Yunus Musah has attracted admiring glances from around European clubs for the last few years and will have another opportunity to showcase his talent here.

Barcelona vs Valencia: Head to Head:

There have been 58 meetings between Barcelona and Valencia. The hosts have won 30 games while the visitors have won 12 times. There have been 16 draws between the two teams.

The hosts have won their last four games in this fixture.

Yes, coach 😱#BarçaValencia pic.twitter.com/BUqd42HvBz

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) March 4, 2023

The visitors are without a clean sheet in their last five games in this fixture.

Barcelona are one of two teams in La Liga this season yet to taste defeat on home turf.

Predicted Line-ups:

Barcelona predicted lineup (4-3-3): Ter Stegen; Kounde, Araujo, Christensen, Alba; De Jong, Busquets, Kessie; Raphinha, Torres, Fati.

Valencia predicted lineup (4-3-3): Mamardashvili; Foulquier, Gabriel, Diakhaby, Lato; Musah, Guillamon, Almeida; Castillejo, Duro, Lino.

BAR vs VAL: Fantasy XI

Ter Stegen; Kounde, Araujo, Christensen,Musah, Guillamon, De Jong, Raphinha, Torres, Fati, Duro.