FC Barcelona VS Cadiz, a comfortable home victory

Match Time：2/21/2021 21:00 Sunday  (GMT+8)

Spanish La Liga --  FC Barcelona   VS   Cadiz

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Barcelona will be looking to make it eight La Liga victories in a row when they welcome an out-of-form Cadiz side to Camp Nou on Sunday afternoon.  

 

Ronald Koeman's side are currently third in the table, nine points behind leaders Atletico Madrid, while Cadiz have dropped into 15th following a run of four straight defeats.  

 

Match preview  

Barca's league form in 2021 has been excellent, winning each of their last seven matches, including a 5-1 victory over Alaves last weekend, which also made it 12 games unbeaten in Spain's top flight.  

 

Koeman's side will enter this weekend's contest off the back of a hugely disappointing result in the Champions League, though, having lost 4-1 to Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their last-16 tie.  

 

Kylian Mbappe scored a hat-trick for the French champions after Lionel Messi had made the breakthrough, and the Catalan giants now have a mountain to climb in the second leg on March 10.  

 

Barca also have serious work to do if they are to progress to the final of the Copa del Rey, having lost 2-0 to Sevilla in the first leg of their last-four contest on February 10.  

 

Despite their impressive league form, Koeman's side are still third in the table, three points behind second-placed Real Madrid and nine points behind leaders Atletico, meaning that it is going to be incredibly difficult to reclaim the La Liga title, which appears to be staying in Madrid.    

 

Cadiz were excellent in the first half of the season as they stayed in and around the top half, but there is no getting away from the fact that the team are currently going through a difficult spell.  

 

Indeed, Alvaro Cervera's side have picked up just one point from their last five matches, losing their last four to Sevilla, Atletico, Real Madrid and Athletic Bilbao, conceding 15 times in the process.  

 

Cadiz are currently 15th in the table, just three points clear of the relegation zone, meaning that they could soon find themselves pulled into the bottom three if their poor run of form continues.  

 

El Submarino Amarillo have been impressive on their travels this season, though, picking up 14 points from 11 matches, while they were the last team to beat Barca in Spain's top flight, recording a 2-1 victory when the pair locked horns in the reverse game back in December.  

 

Barcelona La Liga form: WWWWWW 

Barcelona form (all competitions): WWWLWL  

Cadiz La Liga form: WDLLLL Cadiz form (all competitions): LDLLLL  

 

Team News  

Barca will again be without the services of Ansu Fati, Philippe Coutinho and Sergi Roberto through injury, while the match is also likely to come too soon for Ronald Araujo, who is battling an ankle issue.  

 

Gerard Pique made his return from injury against PSG and should continue in the heart of the defence, and the bulk of the side that featured in the Champions League is likely to remain in place.  

 

There could be a change in the final third of the field, though, with Trincao, who scored twice in last weekend's win over Alaves, potentially joining Messi and Antoine Griezmann in attack.  

 

As for Cadiz, Marcos Mauro is back following a suspension and should take the place of Juan Cala, who will now serve a ban due to his yellow card against Athletic last time out.  

 

Augusto Fernandez, Carlos Akapo and Luismi Quezada are all still on the sidelines through injury, while Jens Jonsson and Alex Fernandez remain doubts for the visitors.  

 

Alvaro Negredo will start in one of the two positions in the final third and is likely to be joined by Anthony Lozano despite the presence of Ruben Sobrino.  

 

Barcelona possible starting lineup: 

Ter Stegen; Dest, Pique, Lenglet, Alba; Pedri, Busquets, De Jong; Trincao, Messi, Griezmann  

 

Cadiz possible starting lineup: 

Ledesma; Iza, Alcala, Mauro, Espino; Sanchez, Jonsson, Fali, Perea; Lozano, Negredo    

 

Barcelona 3-0 Cadiz