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Barcelona vs Villarreal – LIVE!
Barcelona kick off their 2020-21 LaLiga campaign against Villarreal at Camp Nou on Sunday night.
It has been a tumultuous summer for the Blaugrana, with Ronald Koeman replacing Quique Setien as coach, in addition to the high-profile transfer sagas involving Lionel Messi and the late Luis Suárez.
Looking to make a dent in Barcelona’s initial bet to regain the title lost to Real Madrid last season, a Villarreal team that has already played twice this season, beating Eibar and drawing with Huesca.
Follow all the build-up and action LIVE with Ben Hayward from Standard Sport in Barcelona …
Live updates
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It won’t be long before official team news arrives, so Standard Sport expects both teams to get back in shape at Camp Nou tonight …
Forecast of the XI of Barcelona: Grandchild; Sergi Roberto, Piqué, Lenglet, Alba; Busquets, De Jong; Coutinho, Messi, Dembélé; Griezmann
Villarreal XI planned: Asenjo; Gaspar, Mori, Torres, Estupinan; Chukwueze, Coquelin, Parejo, Gomez; Alcacer, Moreno
Barcelona team news
Frenkie de Jong and Sergio Busquets should start in the double pivot in midfield for Barcelona tonight, with Miralem Pjanic on the line to debut from the bench after arriving from Juventus in June.
Starting goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen is still recovering from knee surgery, so Neto will take his place between the posts.
Martin Braithwaite and Samuel Umtiti are out, but young midfielder Riqui Puig will be on the bench despite being previously told by Koeman that he was not in the club’s plans for this season.
Suárez shines in Atlético’s debut
Speaking of Suárez, what debut has he had with Atlético this afternoon.
The former Liverpool star scored twice and provided an assist in just 20 minutes from the bench for Diego Simeone’s side when they thrashed Granada 6-1 in Madrid.
You wonder if Barcelona will regret having let him go …
Griezmann will assume the role of Suárez
Barcelona starts tonight without Luis Suárez.
The Uruguayan forward signed for Atlético de Madrid on Friday and will be replaced as center forward by Antoine Griezmann in the Camp Nou clash.
Philippe Coutinho and Ousmane Dembele could be used on either side of Lionel Messi in Ronald Koeman’s 4-2-3-1 formation, with Ansu Fati as another alternative.
January signing Francisco Trincao is also in contention on the right after some impressive performances in the club’s pre-season friendlies.
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Date, time and place
Barcelona vs Villarreal is scheduled to kick off at 8pm BST.
This match will be played behind closed doors at Camp Nou without the fans being present due to government guidelines on the coronavirus.
How to watch
television channel: UK viewers will be able to watch the match on Premier Sports, together with LaLigaTV, which has the rights to show Spanish football in the UK and Ireland.
Viewers with a Sky subscription can register to watch LaLigaTV for free until October 15, while those who do not have the same time to register and stream games on Premier Player.
For more information, click here.
Team news
Last year’s runner-up, Barcelona, will not have Marc-Andre ter Stegen until the end of October at the earliest, with Neto as a substitute between the clubs.
Koeman will also have Samuel Umtiti and Martin Braithwaite unavailable due to injury, while Luis Suárez and Nelson Semedo have, of course, just completed their moves to Atlético de Madrid and the Lobos, respectively.
However, the Dutchman will have someone to trust Messi, while Philippe Coutinho, Ansu Fati, Antoinne Griezmann and Frenkie de Jong could be starters.
With De Jong more likely to start alongside Sergio Busquets in midfield, new signing Miralem Pjanic could start on the bench.
Prediction: Barcelona 1-0 Villarreal
Although Barcelona have endured a turbulent summer after a difficult finish last season, it is difficult to look beyond a victory at home.
Indeed, there may still be unrest within the team, with Messi publicly criticizing the club for “throwing” Luis Suárez into the hands of Atlético de Madrid rival.
However, with Messi still in the squad, and Koeman looking for his first Barca win, I narrowly expect a home win.
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