Girona – Barcelona

Girona is a very comfortable opponent for Barcelona

Barcelona will play away against Girona on Saturday 28 January. Xavi's side are still having a perfect 2023. A run of wins in all competitions. In the middle of the week, Barcelona managed to beat Real Sociedad without too much nerves. It was expected to be a tough match, but the opponents helped out with a quick sending off. Real Sociedad were reduced to ten men on 40 minutes. In the end, Barcelona converted a numerical advantage. But even with ten men on the pitch, the Basques had two clear goalscoring chances. In recent matches, Barcelona's defence has caused concern. The team has begun to allow opponents to create significantly more threats. At the same time, hardly any penalties have been inflicted so far because of poor execution. In the Spanish championship, Barcelona have failed to win only three of their seventeen matches. Interestingly, the club have beaten all their opponents, with the exception of Real Madrid, on the road. At the moment, the margin of victory over Madrid is three points. As far as the disqualified are concerned, the situation has not changed. Lewandowski and Torres will miss one more match. After the encounter with Girona, the players will be able to return to the squad. There are no other losses. All the key players are ready to take to the pitch. Girona, on the other hand, are not yet in a good position. The standings remain comfortable. The club occupies eleventh place with 21 points, but the task of survival is far from being solved. Only the victory over Sevilla can be put on the plus side. As for other neighbours Rayo Vallecano and Espanyol, they failed to beat them. In the last round, the average mid-table side suffered a predictable defeat at the hands of Villarreal. The match against the Submarine was notable for interrupting Girona's streak of fourteen games in which goals were being exchanged. Defence is the weak point of Michela's club. Girona have conceded 28 goals. The situation has especially deteriorated since the resumption of the season. The Catalans have allowed their opponents to score eight goals in five meetings. At the moment, Girona have not had a dry spell in the season at all. Like Barcelona, there is a problem with disqualification. The main defender Bueno will not play in the upcoming match. The bookmakers give rather high odds on the visitors. Barcelona are unlikely to experience difficulties. In terms of style, Girona is ideal for Xavi's team. The hosts cannot operate in a closed-down manner. In space, Barcelona have a good chance of a smashing victory even without Robert Lewandowski. The Cup match didn't take much away. Xavi can now use a substantial rotation. Girona have a good chance of scoring against a formidable opponent, but are unlikely to be able to defend the points.