Athletic Club and FC Barcelona face each other this Thursday in what is the highlight of the Copa del Rey round of 16. Barcelona arrives at San Mamés after offering a good image in the Clásico but that was not enough to avoid defeat.
For the first time, Xavi will be able to count on most of his players, except for the injured Eric García, Umtiti, Sergio Roberto, Braithwaite and Wague, and he will be able to put up a practically gala eleven since the Cup presents itself as the great opportunity for the Barça ends the season lifting a title. These could be the chosen ones.
In principle, the Cup is Neto’s competition and the Brazilian goalkeeper will go back under the sticks as he did in the round of 32 against Linares.
On the right side will be Dani Alves. Dest does not fit into Xavi’s plans and Mingueza does not finish convincing him, so it is unlikely that he will give them a starting opportunity against a rival like Athletic.
In the center of the defense will be Gerard Piqué. The center-back is one of the regulars and with Umtiti and Eric García injured, Xavi doesn’t have much else to choose from either.
Next to Piqué will be Ronaldo Araújo. The Uruguayan is the Barcelona defender who is at the best level and given the speed of Iñaki Williams, Araújo is the only one who can stop him.
On the left-back, Jordi Alba will repeat, who is one of the players who do not have a clear replacement in the squad. Against Linares he was already a starter, although due to the change in the system he played in a more advanced position.
Regardless of the system or the rival, Busquets is one of the fixtures. The captain’s legs feel heavy as the minutes go by, but there is no one in the squad who performs in that position as well as he does.
Gavi will repeat in the eleven regarding the Super Cup match. The midfielder, in addition to class, has grit, enthusiasm and a thirst for victory. There is no ruling out that Nico enters his place.
Pedri reappeared last week in the Classic and in the time he was on the pitch he showed why he is going to be one of the important pieces of this Barça. In principle, he is ready to start, but it cannot be ruled out that Xavi reserves him for the second half and Nico or Riqui Puig will take his place.
Ousmane Dembélé is the most dangerous player that Barcelona has, with the permission of Ansu Fati, although he needs to have more influence on the scoreboard. If he refuses to renew, he may be playing his last games with the Barça shirt.
Ferrán Torres made his debut as a Barça player in the Super Cup and, although he was only there for 45 minutes, tomorrow he will also play his second game as a starter. Against Madrid the lack of activity was noticed but he needs minutes to pick up the pace.
The eleven is completed by Luuk de Jong. With his three goals between three games, the Dutchman is being the most decisive player in Barcelona. We’ll see if he continues his scoring streak and manages to put Xavi in a bind about his continuity.
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