LaLiga, Round 19

Eibar vs Barcelona – Match preview, Team news & Possible lineups

With Eibar being defeated in all of their 4 official encounters against Barcelona in history, the hosts are eager to change the plot.

By Richard Downing

Sunday evening will see Eibar hosting Barcelona at Ipurua in what should be a real treat of a football match.

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Eibar are a little bit short of their usual pace after losing to Atletico Madrid twice in a quick succession – first in LaLiga, extending their run without win to four games in competition, then in Copa del Rey where they virtually lost all chances to progress falling 3-0 at the Calderon. Between those matches they managed to bounce back in the league by defeating Sporting 2-3 at Molinon, but meeting against Barca will present completely different challenge.

As for Barcelona themselves, having finally broken the curse of Anoeta (first win in 10 years there against the resilient hosts Real Sociedad) in Copa del Rey, they remain in Basque Country for this meeting that is considered a must-win following Real Madrid’s recent poor run and chance to further reduce the deficit.

Story of the week for the visitors is still Lionel Messi and his contract renewal – sources differ on the matter and media always like to stir the issues up, but at the moment it looks likely the Argentine international will remain Barcelona player for some years more.

Current LaLiga table:

Head to Head:

This one isn’t really great for the hosts. The picture says it all.

Statistics

Eibar have only scored one goal in 4 meetings against Barcelona, losing them all with a total goal difference 1-12. In the last meeting Barca cruised through Ipurua with a 0-4 win.

Lineups & Ratings of the most recent meeting:

Date: 22 Jan 2016
Time: 20:45 CET
Venue: Ipurua, Eibar, Spain
Referee: Sanchez Martinez
Current odds: Eibar 9.50 – 6.00 – 1.29 Barcelona

Team news – Eibar Eibar

Ramis, Kike Garcia, Arbilla, David Junca and goalkeeper Asier Riesgo are all injured for the hosts. Taking all that into account, it’s expected Mendilibar will start Yoel between sticks and keep defence in a 4-men formation featuring Capa, Dos Santos, Lejuene and Luna.

Team news – Barcelona Barcelona

Mascherano is suspended for the clash while Rafinha is still recovering from the injury. We’ll probably see Aleix Vidal in play instead of Sergi Roberto if Luis Enrique decides to do some rotations.

Possible lineups:

Match facts:

  • Eibar are winless in their last two home games (D1 L1). They haven’t gone three or more since April 2016.
  • Barcelona have won all four of their top-flight meetings with Eibar, averaging three goals a game and keeping three clean sheets.
  • Barcelona have scored in each of their last 12 away league games, netting 37 in total (3.1 per game).
  • Luis Suarez has scored in four of his last five league games.
  • Lionel Messi has scored in his last four games played (five goals) – the Argentinian hasn’t scored in five or more consecutive games since May 2015 (6).
  • The Argentinian has scored in his three meetings vs Eibar in LaLiga (five goals).
  • Pedro Leon has made more crosses than any other LaLiga player this season (154).

Team streaks:

  • Barcelona are on a 3 match unbeaten run.

Eibar vs Barcelona