Barcelona will endeavour to return to winning ways in Spain's top flight when they resume their 2025-26 campaign with a fixture against Valencia on Sunday night.
The Catalan giants are fourth in the La Liga table, boasting seven points from their first three matches, while Valencia are ninth, collecting four points from their opening three games.
Match preview
This match had initially been pencilled in to mark the opening of the new Camp Nou stadium, but the date has again been pushed back, with this fixture therefore taking place at Johan Cruyff Stadium, which only has a capacity of 6,000.
The stadium is normally home to Barcelona's second team and women's team, and history will be made on Sunday, as the Johan Cruyff Stadium will become the ground with the lowest capacity to host a La Liga game.
Barcelona must put any distractions aside, though, as Hansi Flick's side look to return to winning ways following the disappointment of the 1-1 draw with Rayo Vallecano last time out.
The reigning champions won their opening two fixtures of the season against Mallorca and Levante, scoring six times in the process, but they were given a scare against the latter, having to come from two goals behind to win, while Flick's side were far from their best against Rayo.
Seven points from three matches has left them fourth in the table, two points behind the leaders Real Madrid, who will have the chance to open up a five-point advantage on Saturday afternoon.
Barcelona's attention will then switch to the Champions League, with the Catalan side due to begin their league phase away to Newcastle United on September 18.
Valencia's Javi Guerra in action on September 28, 2024
Valencia, meanwhile, opened their La Liga campaign with a 1-1 draw against Real Sociedad, before suffering a 1-0 defeat to Osasuna in their second match of the season.
Los Che put in an excellent performance in their last match, though, beating Getafe 3-0 at Mestalla, and a respectable total of four points from three matches has left them ninth in the division.
Carlos Corberan's side finished 12th in La Liga last season, so there is room for improvement this season, and a busy summer transfer window saw them bring in eight players.
Valencia have only managed to win 59 of their previous 230 matches against Barcelona in all competitions, and they have lost each of their last four, conceding 18 times in the process.
Barcelona beat Valencia 7-1 in the corresponding game between the two sides last season, while Los Che have not managed to overcome the Catalan giants away from home in Spain's top flight since April 2016.
Barcelona La Liga form:
WWD
Valencia La Liga form:
DLW
Team News
Barcelona's Frenkie de Jong pictured on March 5, 2025
Barcelona will be missing Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Gavi, Alejandro Balde and Frenkie de Jong for this weekend's match, so Flick's options in midfield are limited.
Marc Casado is likely to be given the nod alongside Pedri, with Dani Olmo featuring as the number 10, while Ferran Torres is set to lead the line once again, with Barcelona still being careful with Robert Lewandowski's fitness due to a recent hamstring problem for the experienced striker.
Flick could make a couple of changes at the back, though, with Pau Cubarsi and Gerard Martin both pushing to be introduced into the starting XI on Sunday.
As for Valencia, Javi Guerra's future remains the subject of speculation despite signing a new deal over the summer, and the highly-rated midfielder will again be in the Los Che XI here.
The away side's squad is actually in excellent shape at this moment in time, with no injuries being reported, so head coach Corberan has some big decisions to make when it comes to team selection.
Arnaut Danjuma and Diego Lopez have both found the back of the net this season, and the pair are in line for starts in the final third of the field, while captain Jose Gaya should again play as the left-sided wing-back.
Barcelona possible starting lineup:
J Garcia; Kounde, E Garcia, Cubarsi, Martin; Pedri, Casado; Yamal, Olmo, Raphinha; Torres
Valencia possible starting lineup:
Agirrezabala; Tarrega, Diakhaby, Copete; Foulquier, Guerra, Santamaria, Gaya; Lopez, Danjuma, Rioja
SM words green background
We say: Barcelona 3-1 Valencia
Valencia are capable of making this a tricky match for Barcelona, and we are backing the visitors to score. However, the Catalan outfit's quality in the final third of the field should allow them to secure all three points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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