How will Barcelona line-up against Real Sociedad?

Goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen is one of the first names on the team sheet so he will undoubtedly start against Real Sociedad. If not for him, Barcelona would not be in the position of only being one point behind Real Madrid.

But one of the constants in an up-and-down season has been the state of the defense. As has been stated many times previously, it remains a weak point of the side.

Still without Sergi Roberto, Nelson Semedo will once again man the right-side of defense. He had an excellent first-half against Real Madrid both in defense and attack. His influence waned down the stretch but he was not the only one who struggled in the second-half.

Much like Ter Stegen, Gerard Pique is also one of the first names written down in the line-up. He was responsible for Madrid’s first goal when Vinicius’ shot deflected off his leg and into goal. One blunder aside, he played pretty well considering he was a doubt leading up to the game.

The real question becomes who his partner in defense will be. Samuel Umtiti started the last match and shared some of the blame for the second goal. Setién has yet to settle on a starter there thought the Frenchman does seem to be favored over Clement Lenglet.

That being said, Lenglet did start in their last Champions League match against Napoli. He may be inclined to play Lenglet since the team conceded less when he’s playing rather than Umtiti.

Jordi Alba was the surprise inclusion last week as his injury was supposed to keep him out nearly a month. He came back in half the time and looked like the Alba of old. It’s evident Junior Firpo isn’t trusted or else Alba would not have been rushed back.

Expected Barcelona defense

Goalkeeper: Marc-Andre ter Stegen
Right-back: Nelson Semedo
Center-back (right): Gerard Pique
Center-back (left): Clement Lenglet
Left-back: Jordi Alba