PREVIEW | FC Barcelona v RCD Espanyol
From 1997 to 2009, RCD Espanyol played their home games at the Estadi Olímpic following the demolition of their old ground and while their current stadium was being built. Curiously, a decade and half later, it is FC Barcelona who are making temporary use of the Montjuïc venue, and on Sunday at 4.15pm CET they will be hosting their city rivals at the same place that the Parakeets once hosted them.
It's happening at a time when Hansi Flick and his team are on an absolute high. Their form was already excellent, but huge wins against their nemesis Bayern Munich and traditional title rivals Real Madrid have sent blaugrana hearts into overdrive, and this game presents the opportunity to further consolidate their position at the top of the Liga table. Madrid, now six points adrift, are not playing this weekend after their visit to Valencia was cancelled due to the tragic events in the region this week.
Indeed, speaking at his pre-game press conference, Flick echoed a general mood among his squad when suggesting that it might have been a better idea to have suspended all games this weekend.
Naturally, a minute's silence will be observed prior to the game in memory of the over 200 lives that have been lost. The club has also announced that it will be auctioning off the jerseys worn in the game to raise funds for the relief efforts.
The game will also be preceded by a number of recognitions for the players. Aitana Bonmatí of the women's team will be showing off her second Ballon d'Or and Lamine Yamal will be doing likewise with his Kopa Trophy as the world's best player aged under 23. And Robert Lewandowski will be collecting the Liga Player of the Month award for October.
On paper, a home win is very much on the cards against a side that has failed to win any of the last 26 derbies (although they did manage to draw two of the last three). After bouncing straight back up from the second division last season, Espanyol have struggled to readapt and are currently fourth from bottom, with five defeats in their last six outings. Their away form has been particularly miserable, with just one point so far on the road.
Team news
Ferran Torres, Marc-André ter Stegen, Marc Bernal, Andreas Christensen and Ronald Araujo all remain out, and Eric Garcia is also ruled out of the derby.
Frenkie de Jong, Dani Olmo, Fermín López and Gavi are all readjusting after returning from injury, and it will be interesting to see which of them get to start on Sunday.
Fernando Calero and Edu Expósito are Espanyol's main absentees, while Pol Lozano failed to complete the 4-0 defeat of lower league outfit San Tirso in the first round of the Copa del Rey this week. Alejo Véliz impressed with a hat-trick in that game, and coach Manolo Gonzalez might be tempted to use him in this game too.
Hansi says
“A derby against Espanyol is a tough game for us. After a great week, it's very important to play at one hundred percent. We need to focus on intensity ... The road is long until the end of the league, and we're doing well.”
“We have Ferran Torres who’s from [Valencia]. We talked about it with the team. It’s not easy to decide what should be done. Something similar happened in Germany three years ago, and it’s horrible. If we can support the Valencian Community, we will. The rest is up to LaLiga ... In the end, if I could make the decision, maybe I would [suspend all sport].”
“We’re not putting pressure on [Ronald Araujo]. There’s no need to rush, as it was a serious injury. I’ll be very happy when he’s back.”
“I believe [Eric Garcia] will return after the international break. He’s had some issues, and we had to decide for him to train separately from the group.”
“I’m happy with Ansu. He’s at one hundred percent. I don’t know if he’ll be in the lineup.”