Middle
With Mascherano forced to play at the back, Barcelona don’t really have a backup for him in midfield. Barcelona have central midfield options in Andre Gomez and Denis Suarez and Enrique started the former alongside Rakitic against Celtic.
Rafinha, however, has been quite impactful for Barcelona this season and we expect him to start in place of Gomez against Sociedad.
Sergio Busquets will take his place in the defensive midfield and Barcelona really don’t have a better player in that position. They are already looking at long-term prospects for their anchor position.
Attack
A huge positive for the Catalans is Messi and Suarez returning to the squad. Messi returned from a short injury with a brace against Celtic.
Suarez comes back from suspension. Pace Alcacer was a disappointment as the centre-forward in the last match and Suarez will replace him.
