Barcelona will play hosts to Celta Vigo at the Nou Camp on Saturday hoping to consolidate their place at the top of the La Liga standings. The Catalan giants will come into this encounter at the back of a scoreless draw at home versus Slavia Prague in midweek.
Ernesto Valverde will likely go for a 4-3-3 set-up and might make a few changes to his starting XI for this clash against the Galicia-based outfit.
4-3-3 Barcelona Predicted Lineup To Face Celta Vigo
Defence
Marc Andre ter Stegen will lineup as the first-choice keeper once again despite keeping just one clean sheet in his past four starts across all competitions. Gerard Pique and Clement Lenglet are expected to operate as the centre-backs as the defensive duo tries to put in a solid display against Celta Vigo this weekend.
Sergi Roberto might get the nod to start at the right-back position while Nelson Semedo operates on the other side as the left-back. Both full-backs will need to pick and choose their moments to get forward as they cannot afford to leave spaces behind and let the Barca centre-halves be exposed on the counter. Jordi Alba can be ruled out of this contest after he had sustained a hamstring problem versus Slavia Prague in midweek.
Valverde has to find a way to inspire his defenders to stop conceding cheap goals at the back. Hence, this home game versus Fran Escribá’s men could be the perfect chance for them to keep a clean sheet in front of the Barca faithful inside the Nou Camp.
Midfield
Barca could lineup with the midfield three of Arthur Melo, Frenkie de Jong and Sergio Busquets as Valverde looks to freshen things up at the centre of the park. All three players will have to hold strong and win the midfield battle so that they can create some decent chances for the front players.
Arturo Vidal will have to be content with a spot on the bench but might get a chance to influence the game if Valverde calls upon his services.
Attack
Luis Suarez is a major doubt for this clash, but he could recover in time to lead the charge for Barca up top. However, Valverde will be a bit reluctant to take any risks especially considering the Uruguayan striker’s age, so Suarez might have to settle for a place on the bench even if he can pass a late fitness test ahead of this match.
The Catalan outfit could choose to go with the front three of Ansu Fati, Antoine Griezmann and Lionel Messi up top. The Barca forwards have struggled to score goals of late after netting just one goal in the last two matches.
Both Ousmane Dembele and Carles Perez could be used as impact substitutes in the second half.
