Chaos, conflict and in-fighting best describe Barcelona’s tumultuous offseason.
After dropping La Liga to Real Madrid, then suffering an 8-2 humiliation at the hands of the UEFA Champions League winners, Bayern Munich, a return to the pitch is exactly what the club needs as they open up the season against a Villarreal side with high expectations.
Villarreal’s comes into this one with two games already in the books. A season-opening draw against newly-promoted Huesca and narrow win over Eibar look disappointing on the surface, but Villarreal’s dominance and the quality of the chances they created will give them hope against a wounded Barcelona side.
In this tactical analysis, we’ll look at Villarreal’s attacking rotations and adaptations in Barca’s new-look attack. Analysis of defensive vulnerabilities will also shed light on the possible tactical points each team will address.
Predicted lineups
Barcelona predicted lineup (4-2-3-1): Neto, Sergi Roberto, Clément Lenglet, Gerard Piqué, Jordi Alba; Sergio Busquets, Frenkie de Jong; Lionel Messi, Philippe Coutinho, Ansu Fati; Antoine Griezmann
Ronald Koeman makes his debut on the Barcelona bench with a formation and side that should mirror the one that recently faced Elche. With Marc-André ter Stegen still recovering from an injury, Neto gets the start in goal. The backline features Roberto, Lenglet, Piqué and Alba, while Busquets and de Jong form a double pivot. Miralem Pjanić is expected to make his debut at some point in this match as part of the pivot. Griezmann will nominally lead the line with Messi, Coutinho and Fati underneath. Ousmane Dembélé and Francisco Trincão could also receive starts in this match but are more likely to start on the bench.
Villarreal predicted lineup (4-4-2): Sergio Asenjo, Mario Gaspar, Raúl Albiol, Pau Torres, Pervis Estupiñán; Samuel Chukwueze, Vicente Iborra (Parejo), Dani Parejo (Francis Coquelin), Moi Gómez; Gerard Moreno, Paco Alcácer
Look for Unai Emery field a similar roster the previous matches. Within the 4-4-2, Asenjo will be in goal with a backline of Marion, Abiol, Torres and Estupiñán. In midfield, Chukwueze and Gómez should get the starts on the wings with Coquelin and Parejo in the middle. Up top, expect the pairing of Moreno and Alcácer. All signs point to Real Madrid’s Takefusa Kubo not making earning his first start of the season.
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