BAR vs VIL: Barcelona welcome Villarreal in LaLiga encounter

Barcelona are in search of their winning ways after suffering defeat in their last clash against Granada in LaLiga. The Catalan giants will be desperately looking for a win against Villarreal as they welcome them to Camp Nou for a LaLiga clash. Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde’s further setbacks could make his stay at Camp Nou tough. Lionel Messi, who won The Best FIFA Men’s Player Award on Monday, is likely to start after Barca’s poor start, with Antoine Griezmann and Luis Suarez in the attacking line-up.

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Stats this season

In their last clash, the Camp Nou side lost to Granada 0-2 in an away game. Their away form has been weak throughout this season as they have picked just one point from three away games. Meanwhile, Barcelona have won both of their home games. On the other hand, Villarreal have registered two wins, two draws and one defeat in their first five games. In the last match, Villarreal eased past Valladolid 2-0. Calleja would keep his key players - Gerard Moreno, Moi Gomez and Santi Cazorla in the starting XI, for an attacking start. Moreno has scored a total of five goals in his five games this season.

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Injuries

Ousmane Dembele will return from his injury, and Ansu Fati might come in as a substitute. Nelson Semedo will replace Jordi Alba, who is out of action with a hamstring problem, as a left-back. For Villarreal, coach Javier Calleja has a completely-fit side apart from his midfielder Bruno Soriano and defender Alberto Moreno as they are out with an injury.

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Barcelona predicted lineup: 

Ter Stegen; Roberto, Pique, Lenglet, Semedo; Busquets, De Jong; Messi, Griezmann​, Suarez

Villarreal predicted lineup:

Asenjo; Quintilla, Torres, Albiol, Pena; Iborra, Cazorla, Gomez; Chukwueze, Moreno, Ekambi

Villarreal are placed on the seventh position, while Barcelona are placed just behind them in the LaLiga points table. The clash between Barcelona and Villarreal will be live by 12:30 am IST.

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