La Liga Preview: Xerez - Barcelona

Excruciating Xerez

Poor Xerez looked as though they were slowly on the road to making drastic improvements in the league after beating Villarreal back in mid-October and successful grinding out draws against Real Valladolid and Sporting Gijon.

But Sunday’s 5-1 demolition by Getafe has sent Cuco Ziganda’s side stumbling ten steps backwards while tumbling back to the foot of the table. It’s hardly a result they needed ahead of this Wednesday’s Herculean tussle with Barcelona, who are fresh off a morale-boosting win over Real Madrid in El Clasico.

But the Andalucian minnows did finally put an end to their dismal goal drought on their travels. The consolation strike at Getafe was their first ever La Liga goal away from home after five previous failed attempts, but whether that has instilled any self-belief in the team ahead of the visit of the Barca attacking juggernaut is another question altogether.  

From Goliath To David

After successfully passing the Athletic Bilbao, Inter and Real Madrid test with flying colours, Barcelona will get a reprieve from taxing encounters as they take on a Xerez side who have collectively managed to score just half the amount of goals Zlatan Ibrahimovic has amassed so far this league campaign.

Coach Pep Guardiola will happily take this rescheduled fixture now. The Blaugrana have not won away from home in the league in their last three trips on the road, but they will be confident of snapping that poor streak in Chapin.

In addition, the Santpedor-born trainer will be given a chance to rest his key players who have had to fight tirelessly in their last few outings as the calendar will heat up again after this. On Saturday, they travel to Deportivo La Coruna before hoping on another potentially energy-zapping trip to Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League where there’s still work to be done. They then return home for what could be another bruising affair as they entertain city rivals, Espanyol, before embarking on a sojourn to Abu Dhabi to compete in the FIFA Club World Cup.

It will be a make-or-break month for ‘El Tricampeon’ and with the entirety of the second half of the season to come after the Christmas break, things will only get tougher as they continue their quest to conquer all six titles that are on offer for them this term.

FORM GUIDE

Xerez

Nov 29 Getafe 5-1 Xerez (La Liga)

Nov 22 Xerez 0-0 Sporting Gijon (La Liga)

Nov 10 Osasuna 1-0 Xerez (Copa del Rey)

Nov 08 Real Valladolid 0-0 Xerez (La Liga)

Oct 10 Xerez 0-2 Sevilla (La Liga)

Barcelona

Nov 29 Barcelona 1-0 Real Madrid (La Liga)

Nov 24 Barcelona 2-0 Inter (Champions League)

Nov 21 Athletic Bilbao 1-1 Barcelona (La Liga)

Nov 10 Barcelona 5-0 Cultural (Copa del Rey)

Nov 07 Barcelona 4-2 Mallorca (La Liga)

TEAM NEWS

Xerez

David Prieto, who had only just returned, will be suspended after being sent off against Getafe. Victor Sanchez, who missed the game against Geta, will return to face his former team-mates while Carlos Calvo and Leandro Gioda are also expected to make it back to the first XI.

Probable Starting XI (4-2-3-1): Renan - Francis, Aythami, Gioda, Casado - Sidi Keita, Armenteros -Victor Sanchez, Calvo, Orellana - Bermejo

Barcelona

Gabriel Milito, who is finally ready to return to action, has been left behind in Catalunya to continue to work on his fitness. Gerard Pique will also miss out on the clash after Guardiola decided to give him a rest. Sergio Busquets is suspended after his sending off in El Clasico but Yaya Toure is back in the squad. Zlatan Ibrahimovic has showed no signs of a recurring injury and he could be reinstated to the starting line-up.

Probable Starting XI (4-3-3): Valdes -Alves, Chygrynskiy, Puyol (C), Maxwell -Xavi, Toure, Iniesta -Messi, Ibrahimovic, Pedro

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Xerez

On loan Valencia goalkeeper, Renan has had to make some blinding saves this season to prevent his modest Xerez outfit from being completely torn apart. But if there’s one possibility of that happening in La Liga, it will be against the irrepressible Barca. The Brazilian will have to play the game of his life to avoid another thumping.

Barcelona

All eyes will be on the newly crowned 2009 Ballon d’Or winner, Lionel Messi. Having finally bagged the prestigious accolade after years of hard work to impress and dazzle, the Argentine will be eager to cap off what has been a scintillating week for himself and the club.

PREDICTION

Xerez will adopt an “every man behind the ball” approach, one that they have used to great effect in recent games prior to the Getafe mauling. It’s unlikely that Barcelona will have to exert as much energy as they did against the likes of Inter and Real Madrid to get a result. As long as they keep attacking and hammering away, it will only be a matter of time before they score. But be warned, the Azulinos will not make it pretty.

Xerez 0-1 Barcelona

KS Leong, Goal.com