Celta Vigo vs Barcelona: Predicted starting XI for trip to Balaidos
Barcelona set to feature some new faces in tough away match.
Every match for Barcelona until the end of the season is going to be treated as a “final.” They cannot afford to drop any more points if they want a shot at winning the La Liga title.
Coming off their 1-0 win against Athletic Bilbao, the Catalans now travel to Vigo where they will take on a tricky Celta Vigo side.
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However, they will do so missing a key component to their side and will more than likely feature players like Ansu Fati and Riqui Puig who played a significant role in their last match.
Celta may be mired in 16th place but they will not be an easy opponent for Barcelona.
Similar to how playing Real Sociedad away used to be a problem for the Blaugrana, the same can be said for their record at Balaidos.
At the Camp Nou, Celta have not presented any problems. It’s playing away where the team has suffered.
You would need to go back to the 2014-15 season under Luis Enrique to find the last time Barcelona managed to beat Celta on the road. They won 1-0 thanks to a late goal by French center-back, Jeremy Mathieu.
Since then, Barcelona have played five away matches losing three of them and drawing the other two. They’ve been outscored 13-7 in that stretch, giving up four goals in two of those losses.
As mentioned, Celta are in 16th place but are coming off back-to-back wins including a 6-0 drubbing against Alaves in their last home match. Barcelona did win their last match but they’ve struggled on the road and given their record at Celta, they’re in for a tough time.
Manager Quique Setien is going to need to field his best line-up and will need to make some tough decisions with regards to starting some of the veterans on his team given their performance against Athletic Bilbao.