Barcelona are back in action in La Liga this weekend as they take on Deportivo Alaves in a crucial game at the Camp Nou on Saturday. The Catalans have blown hot and cold this season and have a point to prove going into this match.
Deportivo Alaves are in 16th place in the La Liga standings at the moment and have improved after a poor run of results. The Basque outfit edged Real Valladolid to a 1-0 victory last week and will look to pull off an upset in this match.
Barcelona, on the other hand, put in a poor performance in their Copa del Rey clash against Sevilla during the week and will want to bounce back in this fixture. The Blaugrana have improved their standing in La Liga and will look to move into second place this weekend.
Barcelona vs Deportivo Alaves Head-to-Head
Barcelona have an excellent record against Deportivo Alaves and have won 17 games out of a total of 24 matches played between the two teams. Deportivo Alaves have managed only four victories against Barcelona and will need to take it up a notch this weekend.
The previous meeting between the two teams took place last year and ended in a hard-fought 1-1 draw. Alaves employed a defensive block on the day and will want to pull off a similar result this weekend.
Barcelona form guide in La Liga: W-W-W-W-W
Deportivo Alaves form guide in La Liga: W-D-L-L-L
Also Read: Sevilla vs SD Huesca prediction, preview, team news and more | La Liga 2020-21
Barcelona vs Deportivo Alaves Team News
Barcelona
Barcelona have a long list of injuries to account for with Gerard Pique, Ansu Fati, Sergi Roberto, and Philippe Coutinho sidelined with long-term injuries. Miralem Pjanic and Martin Braithwaite have also picked up niggles in recent weeks and will be unable to take the field against Alaves.
Ronald Araujo is another key absence for the Catalans and faces a race against time to face Paris Saint-Germain next week. Clement Lenglet was rested against Sevilla and is likely to start in this match.
Injured: Gerard Pique, Ansu Fati, Sergi Roberto, Philippe Coutinho, Miralem Pjanic, Martin Braithwaite, Ronald Araujo
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Deportivo Alaves
Rodrigo Ely is recuperating from an injury at the moment and will be unable to play a part against Barcelona on Saturday. Victor Laguardia is also yet to fully recover from his knock and is unlikely to feature in this game.
Injured: Rodrigo Ely
Doubtful: Victor Laguardia
Suspended: None
Barcelona vs Deportivo Alaves Predicted XI
Barcelona Predicted XI (4-3-3): Marc-Andre ter Stegen; Sergino Dest, Clement Lenglet, Oscar Mingueza, Jordi Alba; Sergio Busquets, Frenkie de Jong, Riqui Puig; Antoine Griezmann, Ousmane Dembele, Lionel Messi
Deportivo Alaves (4-4-2): Fernando Pacheco; Ruben Duarte, Florian Lejeune, Victor Laguardia, Ximo Navarro; Luis Rioja, Tomas Pina, Rodrigo Battaglia, Edgar Mendez; Joselu, Lucas Perez
Barcelona vs Deportivo Alaves Prediction
Barcelona have improved under Ronald Koeman this season but will need to put their loss against Sevilla behind them to put in a good performance in this fixture. Lionel Messi and Ousmane Dembele were influential against the Andalusians and will play pivotal roles in this fixture.
Deportivo Alaves have troubled the Catalans in the past and will set up on the counter at the Camp Nou. Barcelona have a superior squad, however, and should be able to win this game.
Prediction: Barcelona 3-1 Deportivo Alaves
Also Read: Twitter erupts as Barcelona fall to disappointing 2-0 Copa del Rey defeat against Sevilla