Three talking points ahead of Club Brugge vs Barcelona | UEFA Champions League | OneFootball

Barcelona’s 3-1 win over Elche helped them bounce back in La Liga after the defeat in El Clasico, and the team looked better in all respects, including in their defensive stability and attacking vigour.

The team has now travelled to Bruges in Belgium, where they will play their next game – against Club Brugge at the Jan Breydel Stadium – in what is a big game for them in the UEFA Champions League.

The hosts are on a three-game winning streak and have won five of their last six games across all competitions.

Barcelona, meanwhile, enter the game wounded by injuries and having just found some winning momentum.

Barça Universal brings you three talking points ahead of Club Brugge vs Barcelona.

Time to bounce back

Barcelona have momentum on their side. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

Barcelona’s last game in the UEFA Champions League was against Paris Saint-Germain at home – a game that delivered a painful blow and sent the Catalans on a tilt.

The Blaugrana opened well on the night and even took the lead after a period of absolute dominance. Everything, however, changed after the half-hour mark.

Just when it seemed like Barcelona had the situation under control, however, the Parisiens mounted a comeback and found an equaliser.

Their dominance in the second half was too much for Barcelona’s fatigued press, which fell apart, and the Catalans bottled the game in the dying minutes.

A single slip-up, in this new format of the UEFA Champions League, is forgivable and affordable, but it is crucial that they bounce back in the competition later today when they take to the field for the first time since the PSG game.

Hansi Flick’s side are already 12th on the standings after a single slip-up, and a second consecutive poor result will mount the pressure on them ahead of the Chelsea game at Stamford Bridge. 

Taking all three points against Club Brugge, thus, is vital as Barcelona must make the most of the fixtures they have in hand against lower-ranked opposition.

Suspension caution

Frenkie de Jong is at risk of suspension. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

Barcelona’s injury situation has already left the squad thin and crippled, and tied Flick’s hands in terms of selections.

The only factor that can further worsen the situation for him, needless to say, is suspensions, and the manager stares at a complicated situation on that from midfield ahead of tonight’s game.

With Pedri Gonzalez out through injury, he will turn to a combination of Frenkie de Jong and Marc Casado on the night – two players who have established themselves to be reliable and even led the midfield against Elche at the weekend.

The problem, however, is that both players are just one yellow card away from suspension in the competition.

What is worse is that the team’s next game is against Chelsea, one where Pedri’s match fitness will be in doubt and one in which Flick will want to have his best options available.

Club Brugge’s physicality and tall players mean that Barcelona’s midfield will be under extra pressure in duels, and it is not unlikely that one of the players, if not both, will be booked at some point in the night. 

The manager thus has two options – to start the most natural and strong midfield combination he has available and hope for a special night where neither is booked, or risk a younger, more inexperienced name and protect the starters for the game against Chelsea.

Who does Cubarsi replace?

Pau Cubarsi did not play against Elche. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

Pau Cubarsi has not been at 100% this season. He is indeed still just 18 and has a lot of responsibility to shoulder at that young age for Barcelona.

While he has indeed been solid with his distribution, his defensive stability has not quite hit the same level as last season.

Despite all that, however, he continues to be crucial to Flick’s plans, being the best ball-playing defender in the squad and one who understands the defensive plan and high line.

The manager handed Cubarsi a rest against Elche and started Ronald Araujo alongside Eric Garcia, and the combination did surprisingly well to hold the defensive line. 

Araujo’s pace and ability to track back complemented Garcia’s distribution and spatial awareness, and while the team did concede, it was one of their better defensive displays of the season.

As the manager selects his lineup against Club Brugge, the big question is whether Cubarsi replaces Araujo or Garcia.

After all, Cubarsi-Garcia has been his go-to system this season, but Araujo proved his importance in the previous game and could well partner Cubarsi.