PREVIEW: Osasuna v FC Barcelona

FC Barcelona travel to Pamplona on Tuesday for a 9.30pm CET kick-off in what will be the last game for the team before La Liga takes a break for the World Cup.

And it comes with FC Barcelona sitting at the top of the table! After Real Madrid slipped to 3-2 defeat at the home of local rivals Rayo Vallecano on Monday evening, the Catalans can celebrate being outright leaders after 13 games.

While Madrid were beaten, two days earlier Barça were victorious, 2-0 over Almería, in the emotionally-charged final game at Spotify Camp Nou that was Gerard Piqué’s last in front of the home fans.

A win away to Osasuna would ensure Barça stay top until the end of the action in Qatar. But this is no simple fixture. The Navarran side are having a fine season in fifth place at the moment, and as previous results between these sides show, FC Barcelona are never guaranteed three points when they visit El Sadar.

Team news

Xavi named 22 players in his squad for this one. These include Piqué, although it remains to be seen whether this game will be his last in the blaugrana jersey or whether that already happened on Saturday.

With defenders Ronald Araujo, Sergi Roberto and Jules Kounde all out injured, there is a good chance that his services will be needed on last time.

Midfielder Frank Kessi and striker Memphis Depay are also out, meaning call-ups for Marc Casadó and Chadi Riad of the reserves.

Xavi says

“Osasuna are a difficult opponent and they’re on good form. But so are we and we’d love to get the three points before the World Cup starts.”

“Piqué is available to play, so we’ll see … Regarding Araujo, we are speaking to him and the Uruguayan federation. The important thing is to do what’s best for the player … Neither Koundé nor Memphis have serious injuries but the best option is not to rush things. We forced Memphis too much last year.”

“I’m not expecting the players to ease off because of the World Cup. It’s when you don’t go in 100 per cent that you get injured and this is a game that will require all the intensity in the world.”

Did you know?

El Sadar is the place where Ansu Fati scored his first ever goal for the team in 2019, and in doing so replaced Bojan Krkic as the youngest ever Barça goalscorer in the league.

Ez Abde is the most familiar face in the Osasuna team, being a Barça player on loan. He’s been creating a lot of danger down the wing for his new club, providing one assist in eight appearances. Curiously, his only goal for Barça was against Osasuna. However, after picking up an injury against Girona, he probably won’t be featuring in this one.

Barça have only won two of their last five games away to Osasuna. The others were all draws. However, Osasuna haven’t actually beaten Barça at El Sadar since a 3-2 win over Pep Guardiola’s side in 2012.

Osasuna has the third best home record in the league this season, with five wins in seven games. Both València and Getafe came back from Pamplona with all three points.