Villarreal V Barcelona - Preview and possible lineups
We take a look ahead to Sunday's La Liga clash between Villarreal and Barcelona at the Estadio de la Cerámica.
Villarreal: Midfielder Pablo Fornals will miss out after collapsing during training on Saturday due to hypoglycemia. Goalkeeper Andres Fernandez (knee), midfielder Denis Cheryshev (ankle) and forwards Nicola Sansone (calf) and Carlos Bacca (hamstring) have all been left out of the Villarreal squad for the game as they continue their recoveries.
Barcelona: Samuel Umtiti will definitely miss out after picking up a thigh injury in the draw with Celta Vigo last week, meaning that forgotten man Thomas Vermaelen could start. Javier Mascherano and Andres Iniesta will both miss out with knocks. Lionel Messi and Sergio Busquests are expected to return to the starting line-up after being dropped to the bench in the Champions League in midweek. Ousmane Dembele continued his comeback from injury by briefly training with the first team this week but he is still thought to be some way from a return to action.
Javi Calleja (Villarreal manager): "I love Valverde's Barcelona. For now they are the best team in La Liga, since they are the leaders and have not lost a single game. They are the favourites, but we can win. We have enough weapons and excitement.
"We have to look for long periods of possession. We want to make sense of the game, to hurt Barca. There will also be stages in which we will have to protect ourselves. Barca are defending very well and then very dangerous when they have the ball - they create chances from nowhere."
Ernesto Valverde: "Some teams take precautions against strong teams, but teams also have to stay faithful to their own style.
"I think they'll try to dominate us as much as they can. They want to be the protagonists of the game - we're going to try to do the same thing, and we'll see which team emerges victorious."
Form:
Possible lineups:
Villarreal: Barbosa, Mario Gaspar, Alvaro, Victor Ruiz, Costa, Trigueros, Hernandez, Raba, Chuca, Castillejo, Bakambu.
Barcelona: Ter Stegen, Semedo, Pique, Vermaelen, Alba, Rakitic, Busquets, Paulinho, Messi, Suarez, Alcacer.