Barcelona return from the international break and begin a crucial stretch of games in April with a trip to the Spanish capital for the first of three meetings in 10 days against Atlético Madrid, this one in _La Liga_ as the Catalans look to maintain their healthy advantage at the top of the table.
Here’s how we think Hansi Flick will line up his troops for Saturday’s battle:
We have reached the point of the season where every game is gigantic and rotations will be minor, especially in a game that means so much in the title race. So expect a very strong team from Flick in this one.
The coach will get two huge reinforcements back as starting full-backs Jules Kounde and Alejandro Balde are expected to be named in the squad, but they will most likely be on the bench. We think **Eric Garcia** will start this one at right-back after having two full weeks to recover from a minor muscle issue, and **João Cancelo** will retain his spot at left-back while Balde regains full fitness.
There are three center-backs fighting for two spots, and we think Flick likes the pairing of **Pau Cubarsí** and **Gerard Martín** and will prefer them to Ronald Araujo in this one.
Frenkie de Jong is on the final stage of his recovery from injury but won’t be quite ready to return for this one, so **Marc Bernal** will continue to partner **Pedri** in the double pivot. The number 10 position is the one most likely to see a change if Flick decides to pick **Dani Olmo** to have a little more control on the road, but we could just as easily see Fermín López here.
Barça will have to deal with the devastating absence of Raphinha for at least the next month, and **Marcus Rashford** will get the first shot at replacing the Brazilian in this one. Robert Lewandowski is Barça’s best bet up front but he can’t start every game, so we think **Ferran Torres** will get the nod at the striker spot on Saturday to save Lewy’s legs for the Champions League, and **Lamine Yamal** will retain his place on the right wing.
**Possible XI**: Joan; Eric, Cubarsí, Martín, Cancelo; Bernal, Pedri; Yamal, Olmo, Rashford; Ferran (4-2-3-1)
_How do you think Barcelona should line up against Atlético? Let us know your thoughts, predictions and teams in the comments below!_
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