Three talking points ahead of Barcelona vs Athletic Club | La Liga MD13 | OneFootball

Barcelona’s first game after the international break sees them play host to Athletic Club, a team with whom they seem to have a tense relationship following the events of the recent summer transfer window.

After a long Nico Williams saga, including a period when the Basque club walked up to the La Liga offices to question Barcelona’s financial situation, the Catalans are doing well under Hansi Flick despite having a long list of injured players for most of the campaign.

Ernesto Valverde’s side, however, cannot quite say the same, as they are in seventh place with only five wins in twelve games and as many defeats. They have conceded more goals than they have scored and average just one goal per game in the league.

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

The long-awaited day

Barcelona’s game against Athletic Club tomorrow will go down in the history books as the Catalans’ first game back at the renovated Spotify Camp Nou, and there is simply no better place to start the game’s preview than the monumental upgrade of the venue.

Since Joan Laporta and Co. began the Espai Barça project to renovate the stadium to a state-of-the-art facility, Barcelona moved to the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys as their new home stadium.

The renovations kicked off after the end of the 2022-23 season, and the team were expected to be back by the end of 2024. From that deadline being missed to multiple postponements, the stadium is finally ready with a limited capacity just under a year later.

There will only be 45,000 fans in attendance tomorrow, but simply being back at the Spotify Camp Nou will be a massive boost for the dressing room and especially for Hansi Flick, who will be on the sidelines at the venue for the first time.

In fact, so much has changed since the team’s last game at the stadium that the squad now has as many as nine players who have never set foot at the venue. 

Even Lamine Yamal has only played once at the Spotify Camp Nou, which was his debut night, and to think that he returns now as one of the best players in the world puts into perspective how much has changed. A monumental night awaits.

Two pillars rise again

Raphinha returns. (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)

Barcelona have been riddled by injuries from the beginning of the season, leaving Hansi Flick stranded without resources on numerous occasions.

Such has been the situation at times that the manager has had to manage with just enough players to compose an XI while not having any established names on the bench.

From there, the squad has slowly assembled once more, and tomorrow night’s game will see two crucial pillars return – Raphinha and Joan Garcia.

The former, a captain and leader on the field, has been sorely missed in recent months. While he was initially expected to be out for a month and back in time for El Clasico, a relapse forced him to sit out another couple of weeks.

Words cannot put into perspective how much the Brazilian’s return brings to the team’s dynamics, not only for his goal contributions but also for his work off the ball.

Garcia’s return, meanwhile, will make the team far more stable at the back. While Szczesny did largely well in the Spaniard’s absence, the new signing’s initial few games for the club showed what he can bring to the table, and he will make a massive difference.

A crucial midfield decision

Pedri currently remains one of Barcelona’s only regular starters out with injury and is expected to return soon. The Canary Islander’s unavailability, however, leaves the manager with a serious dilemma.

So far, it was Frenkie de Jong who upped his game and stepped up in Pedri’s absence, almost ensuring the team does not feel that the maestro is missing in action. The Dutchman, however, will be unavailable himself tomorrow as he serves his one-game suspension.

With both De Jong and Pedri out of the squad, Flick must put together a midfield that not only provides a balance of creativity and solidity but also is capable of controlling the game.

Marc Casado would appear to be the natural pick and is expected to start on the night as the deeper lying of the two midfielders. Fermin Lopez, given his wonderful form, will likely start as the attacking midfielder.

The third player in the middle of the park will likely be Dani Olmo, especially after he showed that he can play in a deeper role in Barcelona’s game against Celta Vigo.

The likes of Dro, Marc Bernal, Eric Garcia, and Andreas Christensen, meanwhile, are all options to enter the midfield, and it remains to be seen if the manager prefers to go for the aforementioned trio or hand an unexpected player the start.

In either case, his selection in midfield will have a massive part to play in deciding the result on the night, for it is clear that Ernesto Valverde will see Barcelona’s midfield as their single biggest liability on the night.