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Barça and Sevilla play to maintain the dream of the League at the Camp Nou

Matchday 30

The team that loses will practically say goodbye to the possibility of disputing the title against Real Madrid

To be a candidate for the title or not to be. That is what Barcelona and Sevilla are playing for this Sunday at the Camp Nou. The two teams meet in a train wreck to which both arrive with opposite trajectories but in which there will be a winner who will take a step forward in the possibility of challenging Real Madrid for the league title. The team led by Xavi has woken up in 2022 and a win against the team from Seville could help them reach second place, while for Lopetegui’s team it is a commitment they reach with the aim of hitting the table and leaving behind a rival that they already see closely in the rearview mirror. It is a duel for the League and for giving life to a championship that seemed already finished.

«It is a final for us, an opportunity to reach second place after a very good stage of results. Sevilla aren’t coming at the best of times, but they’re a strong team, that’s why they’re up there. It’s a unique opportunity at home and we need our people”, said Xavi in ​​the preview. The Tarrasa coach is aware that this is not just another game in a season of ups and downs, but the unbeatable opportunity to take another step to open the League after having added 26 points out of a possible 30 in the first three months of the year. Winning another direct rival is a plus for a final stretch in which the Egarense assures that “you have to grit your teeth”.

The victory against Sevilla would put the tie to two golden days for the Blaugrana. The victory against Real Madrid in the Clásico was a step forward for Xavi’s project and a great performance in front of his fans and against a Sevilla that seemed unattainable a few months ago could be the culmination of the great moment that the team is going through. The three points would also serve to match the 57 accumulated by Lopetegui’s men and would give the Blaugrana second place thanks to the one-one draw achieved in the first round at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán.

To achieve this important victory, Xavi will not be able to count on the injured Sergi Roberto, Samuel Umtiti, Sergiño Dest and neither will Ansu Fati, a player who is already completing the final phase of his recovery but will still have to wait to return to a squad list. With these absences in mind, the Catalan coach will be able to repeat the backbone of the team that won convincingly 0-4 at the Santiago Bernabéu. Dani Alves would recover the right lane against his former team, Busquets, who has rested during the international break, would occupy the midfield with Pedri and Frenkie de Jong and in attack the trident Dembélé, Aubameyang and Ferran Torres would have another opportunity to display the dynamite they showed in the classic.

It will not be an easy match for the Blaugranas. Sevilla is a wounded giant and it is because in recent weeks the great season it was having has been slowed down. Lopetegui has watched from the bench as his team dropped points against Espanyol, Alavés, Rayo Vallecano and Real Sociedad and how the Europa League, the historic stronghold of Seville, slipped through his fingers against West Ham. The national team break could be a ‘reset’ for a team that faces the final stretch of the season with league options. To achieve that blow at the Camp Nou, Lopetegui will have to make bobbin lace to recover from the innumerable casualties he has. Acuña, Rafa Mir, Papu Gómez, Fernando Reges, Suso and Delaney will not be here due to injury, while Diego Carlos and Rekik are rushing their options to be here after joining training this week after leaving various physical problems behind.

The “visit to the dentist”

This is how Joaquín Caparrós defined it in 2010 and this is how Juande Ramos, Jorge Sampaoli, Míchel or Julen Lopetegui could also have expressed it. Sevilla adds two decades without leaving the Camp Nou in the League with a smile. It was on December 15, 2002 when Casquero and Mariano Toedtli twice pierced the goal of a Barça between the wars that included Frank de Boer, Riquelme, Kluivert, Overmars and a beardless midfielder who today manages Barça. Xavi saw first-hand and with the 6 on his back the last joy of Sevilla at the Camp Nou. Since then, the Nervión team have not won in the league and have even received painful goals such as the 4-0 in the 08-09, 09-10 and 19-20 seasons, the 5-0 in the 10-11 or the 5-1 of the course 14-15.

Likely lineups:

  • Barcelona:
    Ter Stegen, Dani Alves, Piqué, Araújo, Jordi Alba, Busquets, De Jong, Pedri, Dembélé, Aubameyang and Ferran Torres.

  • Sevilla:
    Bono, Navas, Koundé, Diego Carlos, Rekik, Jordán, Rakitic, Óliver Torres, Ocampos, En-Nesyri and Martial.

  • Referee:
    José María Sánchez Martínez (Murcian Committee).

  • Hour:
    9:00 p.m. Camp Nou.

  • TV:
    Movistar LaLiga.

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