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| Robert Lewandowski of Barcelona warms up during the La Liga EA Sports match between Villarreal CF and FC Barcelona at Estadio de la Ceramica on August 27, 2023, in Villarreal, Spain. |
Barcelona return from the international break with a very important La Liga game against Real Betis at the Montjuïc Olympic Stadium, and Xavi Hernández has called up the following 21 players for Saturday’s clash.
Goalkeepers: 1. Marc-André ter Stegen, 13. Iñaki Peña, 26. Ander Astralaga
Defenders: 2. João Cancelo, 3. Alejandro Balde, 5. Iñigo Martínez, 15. Andreas Christensen, 17. Marcos Alonso, 23. Jules Kounde
Midfielders: 6. Gavi, 18. Oriol Romeu, 20. Sergi Roberto, 21. Frenkie de Jong, 22. Ilkay Gündogan, 30. Marc Casadó, 35. Unai Hernández
Forwards: 7. Ferran Torres, 9. Robert Lewandowski, 11. Raphinha, 14. João Félix, 27. Lamine Yamal
There were no injuries during the international break which is great news for Xavi, so the only absences for this one are Pedri (thigh) and Ronald Araujo (hamstring), with the Uruguayan expected back very soon. Young midfielder Fermín López is suspended and can’t be called up from Barça Atlètic, so Xavi gives a chance to academy youngsters Marc Casadó and Unai Hernández to add depth to the center of the park.
Predicted starting XI (4-3-3):
Ter Stegen; Cancelo, Kounde, Iñigo, Balde; Gavi, Romeu, De Jong; Yamal, Lewandowski, Ferran.
The match kicks off at 9pm CET (Barcelona), 8pm BST/WAT (UK & Nigeria), 3pm ET, 12pm PT (USA), 12.30am IST (India, Sunday).