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Barcelona vs Cultural Leonesa: Expected Starting XI for second leg

By Benjamin Barkworth

LEON, SPAIN - OCTOBER 31: Arthur of FC Barcelona, Munir El Haddadi of FC Barcelona, Juan Miranda of FC Barcelona, Ousmane Dembele of FC Barcelona, Clement Lenglet of FC Barcelona, Arturo Vidal of FC Barcelona, Juan Brandariz of FC Barcelona during the Spanish Copa del Rey match between Cultural Leonesa v FC Barcelona at the Estadio Municipal Reino de León on October 31, 2018 in Leon Spain (Photo by David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images)
LEON, SPAIN - OCTOBER 31: Arthur of FC Barcelona, Munir El Haddadi of FC Barcelona, Juan Miranda of FC Barcelona, Ousmane Dembele of FC Barcelona, Clement Lenglet of FC Barcelona, Arturo Vidal of FC Barcelona, Juan Brandariz of FC Barcelona during the Spanish Copa del Rey match between Cultural Leonesa v FC Barcelona at the Estadio Municipal Reino de León on October 31, 2018 in Leon Spain (Photo by David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images) /
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Barcelona hold a 1-0 lead going into the second leg at Camp Nou.

Ernesto Valverde played a heavily rotated lineup in the first leg due to Leonesa being a third division side as well as the league and Champions League being prioritised this season. Barcelona required a late header from Clement Lenglet to come away with the win, but they got the desired result. Therefore, the match served as an opportunity for a number of B team players to show their quality and the second leg is unlikely to be any different.

Lionel Messi, Gerard Pique, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets have been left out of the matchday squad while Luis Suarez, Arthur Melo, Sergi Roberto, Samuel Umtiti, Rafinha and Sergi Samper are all unavailable due to injury. Jasper Cillessen and Thomas Vermaelen have both returned from their respective injuries.

Expected Starting XI (4-3-3)

Jasper Cillessen

Nelson Semedo, Chumi, Thomas Vermaelen, Juan Miranda

Arturo Vidal, Oriol Busquets, Carles Alena

Ousmane Dembele, Munir, Malcom

From the Villarreal game, Semedo, Vidal and Dembele are the only players likely to start this match in order to keep some of the key players fresh. Leonesa shouldn’t offer too much of a challenge at Camp Nou where Barcelona can use the full expanse of the pitch to their advantage.

Riqui Puig is unlikely to start but it would be a surprise to see him not used as an early substitute in the second half considering how impressive he looked in pre-season as well as his form for the B team. Replacing Vidal with him could show a glimpse of the future due to it completing a La Masia trio in midfield.

Vermaelen is fit to play, however, Valverde could opt to play Lenglet instead rather than rushing the Belgian back in. Semedo keeps his place at right-back with Roberto out and Moussa Wague unable to play for the first team due to work permit issues. His understanding with Dembele will be important in breaking down Leonesa’s left side while Miranda will have to try and replicate Alba’s runs on the other wing.

Next. Rafinha out for six months. dark

Dembele is the chief creative threat for the team with Messi and Philippe Coutinho not involved. He is likely to be given licence to roam so it’s key that Malcom stays wide to stretch the defence while Munir occupies the two centre-backs. Alena will be the most advanced out of the midfielders so there should be plenty of opportunities for combination play in central areas. The firepower Barcelona have should be more than enough to blow Leonesa away and secure passage to the round of 16 as they aim to defend their title for the fifth year running.