Barcelona travel to the Province of Alicante without a recognised central striker. Raphinha is most likely to play as Flick’s false nine on Monday.
Best bets for Elche vs Barcelona
- Barcelona -1 (handicap 3-way) at odds of 1.85 with 1xBet
- Both teams to score and over 2.5 goals at odds of 2.05 with 1xBet
- Karim Adeyemi anytime goal or assist at odds of 1.75 with 1xBet
Our analysis: Form of both teams
- Score prediction: Elche 1-3 Barcelona
- Goalscorers prediction: Elche: Nino - Barcelona: Adeyemi, Yamal, Raphinha
The champions finally join in. Barcelona's title defence begins a week late and away from home. Their scheduled opener against Athletic Club was pushed back to 27 August, so Matchday 2 at the Martínez Valero becomes their first competitive outing of 2026-27.
Hansi Flick's pre-season was low-key but productive. They landed a 5-2 win over Basel followed by a 2-1 Joan Gamper victory against Al Ahly. Teenager Hamza Abdelkarim scored again before Raphinha added the second.
Rodri arrived from Manchester City this week and joins Karim Adeyemi, Anthony Gordon, Joao Cancelo and Jesse Bisiwu. The club expect everyone to be registered on time, but Rodri may only be fit for the bench this weekend. Frenkie de Jong is out until 2027 with a knee injury, and Barça still have no recognised central striker.
Elche are already up and running, drawing 1-1 at Deportivo on Monday. Martín Anselmi's first La Liga match in charge saw his back-five and aggressive press perform well at the Riazor.
Grady Diangana remains out with a muscle problem, and Yago Santiago is still recovering from a knee issue. Pedro Bigas is fit again but short of pre-season minutes.
Probable lineups for Elche vs Barcelona
Elche expected lineup: Dituro, Valera, Affengruber, Sangare, Redondo, Chust, Houary, Aguado, Neto, Villar, Nino
Barcelona expected lineup: J. Garcia, E. Garcia, Cubarsi, Martin, Balde, Espart, Bernal, Raphinha, Lopez, Yamal, Adeyemi
Barca to win by at least a two-goal margin
Barcelona have won each of the last four meetings by two goals or more. This includes 3-1 at the Martínez Valero in January and 3-1 at Montjuïc last November.
Elche, for their part, have not beaten Barcelona since 1974. The champions scored 95 league goals last season, 18 more than any rival.
This is Barça's first competitive outing of the domestic campaign. Several starters missed most of pre-season through the World Cup. Flick has no recognised No. 9 after Lewandowski and Ferran Torres departed. However, they still have enough quality to break down a weak Elche side.
Elche vs Barcelona Bet 1: Barcelona -1 (handicap 3-way) at odds of 1.85 with 1xBet
Goals likely at both ends despite Barca’s expected dominance
Both teams scored and over 2.5 goals landed in each of the last two meetings, with both matches ending in 3-1 victories. Elche found the net on both occasions through Rafa Mir at Montjuïc and Álvaro Rodríguez at home.
Martín Anselmi's side carried a genuine threat to Riazor on Monday before drawing 1-1. Barcelona conceded in both of their final pre-season fixtures, shipping two to Basel and one to Al Ahly in the Gamper.
At an odds-against price, this looks like the value play among our Elche vs Barcelona predictions. The recent pattern supports it.
Elche vs Barcelona Bet 2: Both teams to score and over 2.5 goals at odds of 2.05 with 1xBet
Adeyemi to open his goal contribution account
Adeyemi has timed his run perfectly. He played 79 minutes against Basel, opening the scoring after drifting inside from the right and later crossing for Hamza Abdelkarim.
Reports suggest he is now ahead of Anthony Gordon for a starting place, most likely from the left. With Raphinha expected to operate centrally as a false nine, Adeyemi should find one-on-one opportunities against Elche's wing-backs. This will give him chances to both create and score himself.
There is a clear risk to this bet. Much of its value disappears if Flick names Adeyemi among the substitutes. Nevertheless, he should still offer plenty of pace on transitions if he appears as a second-half sub.
Elche vs Barcelona Bet 3: Karim Adeyemi anytime goal or assist at odds of 1.75 with 1xBet