Atletico Madrid vs FC Barcelona: 5 things to look forward to 

#3 Can Atletico breach the weak defensive barriers of Barcelona?

Pique and Roberto against high balls: A big problem

Barcelona is a good attacking team but they are very weak in terms of defense. The game against Betis exposed a lot of flaws in the back line of Barcelona. Sergi Roberto is extremely weak defensively and can be beaten for pace. Gerard Pique is a good player in one on one situations but he is also beaten for pace. Pique is a bit slow while retreating as well. Jordi Alba engages so much in the attacking third that sometimes his defensive duties are unfulfilled.

A lot of times pressure piles on Sergio Busquets to increase his defensive contribution which takes away his lethal deep creative game. This also mounts the pressure on the man between the sticks Marc Ter Stegen. The only howler from Barcelona's #1 has been the one against Betis in the last game.

The Barcelona defense has been very weak in dealing with set-pieces, crosses and high looping balls over the defense. They just don't pressure the player much, allowing them to head the ball without much problem. They also take a lot of time before clearing the danger.

The only resort for the defense is that the Atletico team is not a very attacking minded one. Barcelona is often hit on the counter by teams with good pace but Atletico doesn't offer much of a pace. The only serious threat with his swiftness is Gelson Martins. But doesn't mean that Barcelona can breathe easily. They still have the set-pieces to deal with. Atletico is one of the best teams on the set-piece.

It will be good to witness this defense against Atletico's moderate attack. Samuel Umtiti's return will be good news for the Blaugrana but concerns still lie in the fullback spots.