Abelardo and Barça's paths cross again

Abelardo Fernández, better known as simply 'Abelardo,' will have a reencounter with FC Barcelona this weekend. He will do so as Espanyol's new coach, having been presented by the club on December 30. During his playing days, he featured for 8 seasons at the Camp Nou, participating in 257 games and scoring 17 goals.

The Catalan derby on Saturday (9pm CET) will be a first game in charge for Abelardo. He takes over the struggling 'Pericos' with a home fixture against Ernesto Valverde's LaLiga leaders in their opening match of 2020.

Six games, six defeats

This will not be the first time that Abelardo has pitted his tactical wits against the Blaugrana. He previously did so as coach of Sporting Gijon and Alavés, with three games for each against Barça. On all six occasions, his sides came out on the losing end of the equation.

As a player, he would compete against FC Barcelona on a total of 13 occasions, with a record of three wins, three draws and seven defeats.