Barcelona will be looking to get back to the winning ways when they welcome Valencia to Camp Nou in the final game of the week before a long international break. Luis Enrique's men suffered a shock defeat in their last La Liga match against Deportivo La Coruna and they will be looking to get back to track in this match.
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Barcelona will be able to close the gap to within two points of La Liga leaders Real Madrid if they can pick up all three points against Valencia. The home side has no major injuries and suspensions to deal with ahead of this match apart from a few long-term absentees.
Aleix Vidal and Jeremy Mathieu are both set to miss this match but Neymar, who missed their previous match, is set to get back into the squad. Lionel Messi and Gerard Pique are just one yellow card away from picking up a one-match ban. Enrique said during his pre-match press conference that the La Liga title race will not be decided until the final weeks.
"I think the championship will be decided over its last match days because they are always the most decisive. Now the calendar is looking brutal because of our European engagements, too. Also, the teams further down the table always seem to pick up more points over the final stretch. Valencia have always proved to be a very tricky opponent for us, they have players of a very high standard" Sky Sports quoted him as saying.
After a slow start to the Season, it looked like Valencia would end up in a relegation battle but under the new coach Voro, they have turned things around. They managed a 1-1 draw against Sporting Gijon in their previous match but this game might be a cause for concern for them as they have won just three away matches.
Their injuries just pile on more pressure on them as Nani, Santi Mina and Rodrigo are already missing because of injury. They will have Enzo Perez back from suspension and he should start this match. Valencia will not be going down without a fight and after losing to Barcelona in the reverse fixture, they will be determined to get at least one point.
Valencia manager Voro said that his players should head to Barcelona without any fear and said they need to be at their best to compete with Barcelona.
"Every game is different. We know what we are up against, but fear doesn't get you anywhere. We will have to use our weapons properly to be at 100 per cent, and we will need to perform at a high level in every area to be able to compete with Barcelona" he told valenciacf.com
"They are always a dangerous side. Even more so at home, with the title at stake. We'll be up against a great team who do a lot of things well and have some game-changing players. We are going to use our own qualities to the fullest and try to minimise the things that Barca do well."
Where to watch
The La Liga match between Barcelona and Valencia is set to start at 7:45pm GMT (1:15am IST, 3:45pm EST)
TV and Live streaming information
India: TV: Sony Six/HD. Live streaming: SonyLiv.
Spain: TV: Canal+ Partidazo
UK: TV: Sky Sports 2/HD, Now TV. Live streaming: Sky Go.
USA: TV: beIN Sports. Live streaming: beIN Sports Connect.
Africa: TV: SuperSport 12. Live streaming:SuperSport live.
Middle East: TV: beIN Sports. Live streaming: beIN Sports Connect.
