As Xavi has announced his stay for another season, Barcelona will start planning and executing plans for next season. This campaign hasn’t been below par for the Spanish Giant despite reaching the quarter-final round in the Champions League for a long period.
Barcelona will next lock host Valencia at home on Monday night. They lost their previous game against Real Madrid but gave a good fight overall. As only six games are left in this term, they will look to end it on a positive note.
4-3-3 Barcelona Predicted Lineup Vs Valencia
Defence
Marc-Andre ter Stegen has been a reliable name for Barcelona on the team sheet. He will once again operate between the sticks. Jules Kounde has improved enormously as a right-back and is expected to continue doing so.
Xavi has no reason to alter the centre-back duo of Ronald Araujo and Pau Cubarsi. While the former bounced back in the previous game, the youngster also did well in the high-voltage game apart from conceding an early penalty.
It will be interesting to see if Joao Cancelo will be sent to the bench or not. Despite being an experienced campaigner, the left-back made silly mistakes in back-to-back crucial games. His recent displays must have raised doubts over his permanent signing.
Midfield
Frenkie de Jong broke his ankle during the game last week and will remain sidelined for a long period. In his absence, Pedri should be taking up the responsibility in the midfield. Andreas Christensen continues as a defensive midfielder with Ilkay Gundogan operating higher on the pitch.
Attack
Lamine Yamal has been the find of the season for Barcelona by a mile. He showed his top-notch quality and there is no doubt over his selection on the right wing. Raphinha is also likely to retain his position on the left flank with Robert Lewandowski leading the front line.
Gavi (ACL) and Alejandro Balde (hamstring) are two other absentees.
