FC Barcelona vs Celta Vigo 2023: La Liga Match Preview, Team News and Prediction
FC Barcelona vs Celta Vigo will take place at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys. The Catalan giants will aim to win their sixth game in a row in all competitions.
Xavi’s side have picked up 13 points and sit second in the La Liga table, two points behind Real Madrid. After a draw against Getafe on matchday 1, Barca haven’t looked back since then and have won all their games comfortably.
The La Liga champions hammered Real Betis 5-0 last weekend, following a convincing win against Royal Antwerp in the Champions League in the mid-week. Barcelona are in red hot form right now, and it will be difficult to see their first defeat of the season.
As for Celta Vigo, they have had a rocky start to the season, picking up just four points in five games. Rafa Benitez’s side sit 16th in the table.
Celta managed to pick a draw against Real Sociedad, but lost to Osasuna and Real Madrid. However, they did manage to beat Almeria 1-0, but they were beaten by Mallorca last weekend.
Furthermore, they have only scored four goals in La Liga this season. Their striker, Iago Aspas, is yet to score a single goal this season. However, Aspas has scored ten goals against Barcelona, so he will look to get on the scoresheet.
Barcelona team news
For Barcelona Pedri will miss the game, but Ronaldo Araujo will be back as he has recovered from his injury. However, Xavi will have a headache as Raphinha, Ferran Torres, and Lamine Yamal will compete for one starting position.
One player who might have secured his place in the starting XI is Joao Felix. The Portuguese scored two goals and registered an assist against Royal Antwerp.
Celta Vigo team news
Celta Vigo will travel to Barcelona with their full squad and the only absentee from their team will be Franco Cervi, as he is suffering from a muscle injury.
Benitez is not expected to change his starting XI that played against Mallorca at the weekend. However, he might start Tasos Douvikas in the front line. Furthermore, along with Aspas, Jonathan Bamba and Lucas de la Torre are also expected to retain their spots in the 11.
FC Barcelona vs Celta Vigo Predicted line-ups
Barcelona (4-3-3): Ter Stegen; Cancelo, Kounde, Christensen, Balde; Gundogan, De Jong, Gavi; Yamal, Lewandowski, Felix
Celta Vigo (3-4-3): Villar; U Nunez, Starfelt, Dominguez; Mingueza, Beltran, De la Torre, Ristic; Douvikas, Aspas, Bamba
Prediction
FC Barcelona 3-0 Celta Vigo
Barcelona are unbeatable at the moment, and it’s really difficult to imagine them failing to collect points against Celta. Benitez’s side can make things uncomfortable for them, but Xavi’s side are too strong at the moment.
