Barcelona vs Valencia: Preview, predictions & lineups
With their hopes of retaining the La Liga title all but gone, Barcelona have little to play for down the stretch and they’re next in action against Valencia on Monday night.
It’s been yet another chaotic period in the world of Barcelona, with Xavi’s U-turn regarding his future arriving after his side collapsed in the Champions League quarter-finals and lost El Clasico to champions-elect Real Madrid.
Having announced he’ll be stepping down as manager at the end of the season in January, it was revealed on Wednesday that Xavi will remain as Barcelona’s head coach for the start of the 2024/25 campaign.
His initial decision sparked a 13-game unbeaten run, so it’ll be interesting to see the effect his U-turn has on the Barcelona squad during the final month of the season.
On Monday they’ll be facing a Valencia side that have enjoyed a resurgent campaign with Ruben Baraja at the helm. After finishing 16th last term, Valencia currently occupy eighth in La Liga and have an outside shot of securing European football. This is certainly a big game for the visitors.
Here’s 90min’s preview of the game.
Barcelona vs Valencia H2H Record (Last Five Games)
Current form (all competitions)
|
Barcelona |
Valencia |
|---|---|
|
Real Madrid 3-2 Barcelona – 21/04/24 |
Valencia 1-2 Real Betis – 20/04/24 |
|
Barcelona 1-4 PSG – 16/04/24 |
Osasuna 0-1 Valencia – 15/04/24 |
|
Cadiz 0-1 Barcelona – 13/04/24 |
Granada 0-1 Valencia – 04/04/24 |
|
PSG 2-3 Barcelona – 10/04/24 |
Valencia 0-0 Mallorca – 30/03/24 |
|
Barcelona 1-0 Las Palmas 30/03/24 |
Villarreal 1-0 Valencia – 17/03/24 |
|
Country |
TV channel/live stream |
|---|---|
|
United Kingdom |
LaLigaTV, Premier Sports Player, Premier Sports 1 |
|
United States |
ESPN Deportes, ESPN+ |
|
Canada |
TSN1, TSN+ |
Barcelona will be without Frenkie de Jong for the rest of the season after he sprained his ankle during last week’s Clasico defeat. The Dutchman should be replaced by Pedri in Xavi’s XI.
The hosts are also without long-term absentees Gavi and Alejandro Balde, while Xavi could drop Joao Cancelo in favour of young Hector Fort at left-back.
Marcos Alonso is another option.
Barcelona predicted lineup vs Valencia (4-3-3): Ter Stegen; Kounde, Araujo, Cubarsi, Fort; Christensen, Pedri, Gundogan; Yamal, Lewandowski, Raphinha.
Mouctar Diakhaby is out indefinitely after suffering a horrendous leg injury against Real Madrid in March.
The visitors are otherwise pretty healthy on the injury front, although they could be without stalwart left-back Jose Gaya. The Valencia captain is struggling with a muscle injury.
Valencia predicted lineup vs Barcelona (4-4-2): Mamardashvili; Correia, Mosquera, Ozkacar, Vazquez; Perez, Pepelu, Guerra, Lopez; Almeida, Duro.
Barcelona were certainly unfortunate to lose El Clasico last Sunday, with Xavi’s side doubtlessly showing signs of distinct improvement in 2024.
Their season may well be over, but this is a big month for many Barcelona stars with the club likely to oversee a considerable personnel reshuffle this summer. The hosts take on a fairly stubborn Valencia side that will cede control and territory, attempting to lure Barcelona into a false sense of security.
The visitors could do with a result to boost their hopes of securing European football for next season, but it’ll be a tough ask against a Barcelona side playing without much pressure. Valencia will make life tough for the Catalonians, but the hosts should edge a tight encounter.