Celta Vigo vs Barcelona

The two out-of-sorts La Liga sides go head-to-head at the Estadio de Balaidos as Celta Vigo take on Barcelona.

Celta head into proceedings amid a rough patch, having lost three of their last five La Liga matches (W1, D1), drawing a blank in each defeat in that run. Having allowed 18th-place Cadiz to reduce the gap to just two points, how would be a perfect time for Celta to get their La Liga home campaign back on the rails after suffering five defeats in their first six top-flight fixtures at Balaidos this term (W1). A lack of firepower up top could come back to haunt them, though, with ‘Los Celestes’ failing to score in three of their six La Liga home games while netting precisely once in the remaining three. Celta’s recent H2H fortunes against Barcelona douse any embers of optimism when it comes to a potential upset here, as they’ve only won two of their last nine league meetings with this opposition (D3, L4).

It’s not like Barcelona are having the best of times either, with a series of underwhelming performances leading to Ronald Koeman’s sacking. With the club legend Xavi set to make his managerial debut at Barca, the underperforming Catalan giants will be aiming to halt their three-match winless streak in La Liga (D1, L2). A victory here would be Barcelona’s first away from home this season (D2, L2). Yet, it’s worth noting that the struggling Spanish heavyweights have failed to get on the scoresheet in their last three La Liga road trips. After suffering back-to-back defeats on the road, Barcelona could lose three consecutive La Liga away fixtures for the first time since December 2003.