La Liga
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Played
February 4, 2012 4:00 PM EST
Camp Nou — Barcelona
Referee:‬ Carlos Clos Gomez‎
Attendance:‬ 92000‎
 
9′ Tello
Carlos Vela 73′
72′ Lionel Messi
 

La Liga Preview: Barcelona - Real Sociedad

The Catalan side attempts to end its recent run of draws as Phillipe Montanier's outfit travels to Camp Nou for Spanish Primera Division action.

By Martin Macdonald

More On :  Barcelona, Real Sociedad, Barcelona vs Real Sociedad
Abidal celebrates with Dani Alves - Barcelona
Getty

 PROBABLE LINEUP

BARCELONA


Valdes
Alves, Pique, Puyol, Abidal
Xavi, Busquets, Thiago
Messi, Cesc, Sanchez
REAL SOCIEDAD


Bravo
C.Martinez, Gonzalez, I.Martinez, Estrada
Elustondo, Aranburu, Zurutuza
Griezmann, Agirretxe, Vela

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola has a number of first team squad members out with injury as he prepares for the match against Real Sociedad. Andres Iniesta and Pedro are both missing with thigh injuries and are currently sidelined along with long term absentees David Villa, Andreu Fontas, and Ibrahim Afellay.
Seydou Keita is still on African Cup Of Nations duty with Mali but Barca has been buoyed by the sharp return to fitness of Alexis Sanchez, who was thought to be out for a number of weeks with a shoulder injury but featured in the recent matches against Villarreal and Valencia.

Dani Alves should come back into the starting XI after being dropped for the Copa del Rey match at the Mestalla on Wednesday.

Phillipe Montanier's side has a few slight worries for the match at Camp Nou. Asier Illarramendi has returned to ball work in training and Alberto de la Bella is progressing to full fitness, but neither will feature against Barcelona.

On a positive note for Sociedad, Vadim Demidov has returned to full training and could feature in some capacity against the Catalans.


 DID YOU KNOW?
  • The last match between Barcelona and Real Sociedad ended in a 2-2 draw with Phillipe Montanier's outfit coming from two goals behind to earn a draw at the Anoeta.
  • It had been four years since Barca recorded three successive draws. The club drew 2-2 against Real Madrid, 0-0 in Villarreal and 1-1 draw against Valencia in the Copa del Rey.
  • Carles Puyol scored his third goal of the season in the draw at the Mestalla on Wednesday. His tally for his club now stands at 12 goals in 535 appearances for the Catalan giants.
  • Real Sociedad is currently 12th place in the Spanish Primera Division with 24 points taken from 20 games.
  • Sociedad has scored 37 goals less than Barcelona in the league so far this season. The Txuri-urdin have netted 22 goals compared to Barca's 59.
  • Real Sociedad has contributed to Barcelona's stuttering away form this season. Pep Guardiola's side has drawn five times on the road in La Liga and one of those stalemates came at the Anoeta.

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Field Report
Reader's Predictions
Top 3 Predictions
  • Barcelona 5-0 Real Sociedad
    17.58 %
  • Barcelona 4-0 Real Sociedad
    13.1 %
  • Barcelona 3-0 Real Sociedad
    12.4 %
Head to Head
La Liga ‎(LIGA)‎ Feb 4, 2012 Barcelona 2 - Real Sociedad 1
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La Liga ‎(LIGA)‎ Sep 10, 2011 Real Sociedad 2 - Barcelona 2
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La Liga ‎(LIGA)‎ Apr 30, 2011 Real Sociedad 2 - Barcelona 1
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La Liga ‎(LIGA)‎ Dec 12, 2010 Barcelona 5 - Real Sociedad 0
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La Liga ‎(LIGA)‎ May 5, 2007 Real Sociedad 0 - Barcelona 2
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Last Five Matches
Barcelona
May 25, 2012Athletic Bilbao 0 - Barcelona 3ESPC
May 12, 2012Betis 2 - Barcelona 2LIGA
May 5, 2012Barcelona 4 - Espanyol 0LIGA
May 2, 2012Barcelona 4 - Malaga 1LIGA
Apr 29, 2012Rayo Vallecano 0 - Barcelona 7LIGA
Real Sociedad
May 12, 2012Real Sociedad 1 - Valencia 0LIGA
May 5, 2012Osasuna 1 - Real Sociedad 0LIGA
May 2, 2012Atletico Madrid 1 - Real Sociedad 1LIGA
Apr 28, 2012Real Sociedad 3 - Racing 0LIGA
Apr 22, 2012Real Sociedad 1 - Villarreal 1LIGA
Team News
Available Squads
1Víctor ValdésGoalkeeper
2Daniel AlvesDefender
5Carles PuyolDefender
21AdrianoMidfielder
4Cesc FàbregasMidfielder
11Thiago AlcántaraMidfielder
14Javier MascheranoMidfielder
28Dos SantosMidfielder
10Lionel MessiStriker
-Joan Isaac Cuenca LopezStriker
37TelloStriker
13José Pinto ColoradoGoalkeeper
3Gerard PiquéDefender
22Éric AbidalDefender
6XaviMidfielder
16Sergio Busquets BurgosMidfielder
30Sergi RobertoMidfielder
9Alexis SánchezStriker
1C. BravoGoalkeeper
2Carlos Martínez DíezDefender
3Mikel GonzálezDefender
19CadamuroDefender
26Iñigo MartínezDefender
5Markel BergaraMidfielder
10Xabi PrietoMidfielder
11Mikel Aranburu EizagirreMidfielder
27Rubén Pardo GutiérrezMidfielder
7Antoine GriezmannStriker
21Diego IfránStriker
25Antonio Ramírez MartínezGoalkeeper
16Vadim DemidovDefender
15Ion Ansotegui GorostolaDefender
22Dani EstradaMidfielder
-Javier RosMidfielder
8Joseba Llorente EtxarriStriker
9AgirretxeStriker
23Carlos VelaStriker
Results
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Top Scorers
Player   Goals Penalties
Lionel Messi Lionel Messi
Striker
Barcelona 		50 10
Cristiano Ronaldo Cristiano Ronaldo
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Real Madrid 		46 12
Radamel Falcao Radamel Falcao
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Atlético de Madrid 		24 5
Gonzalo Higuaín Gonzalo Higuaín
Striker
Real Madrid 		22 0
Karim Benzema Karim Benzema
Striker
Real Madrid 		21 0