Getafe vs Barcelona
Time – India: 12:30 AM (Sunday); UK: 8:00 PM (Saturday)
Venue: Coliseum Alfonso Perez
Sparks are guaranteed to fly when 26-time La Liga champions, Barcelona, make the trip to Coliseum Alfonso Perez on Saturday night.
After securing two convincing wins over Villarreal and Celta Vigo in their opening two La Liga fixtures, the Blaugrana had to settle for a 1-1 home draw against Julen Lopetegui’s Sevilla.
The Andalusians looked the better team on the night and were unlucky not to walk away with all three points. Dropping two points also cost Barcelona their potential advantage over Real Madrid — who’ve also drawn once this season.
Getafe, too, haven’t been very lousy in La Liga and are actually tied on points with Barcelona — albeit having played a game more than Saturday’s visitors.
They have been beaten once in La Liga — 3-0 defeat at Real Sociedad, just before the international break. At home, they are capable of putting any team through the wringer, and Barcelona must make sure not to take the hosts for granted.
Getafe vs Barcelona: Head-to-head
Total matches: 34
Getafe wins: 3
Barcelona wins: 25
Draws: 6
On paper, Barcelona are miles ahead of Getafe in every conceivable way, and the numbers are a testament to their superiority.
Getafe’s last win over Barcelona came way back in 2011 and the Madrid-based outfit have struggled, horrendously, since. The Blaugrana have won four of their last five matches against Getafe, scoring eight goals and conceding only twice.
Getafe vs Barcelona: Recent form
Getafe: L-W-D-W-L (Most recent first)
Barcelona: D-W-W-L-W (Most recent first)
Inspired by Ronald Koeman’s appointment, Barcelona kicked off their La Liga campaign with successive wins over Villarreal and Celta Vigo. On the back of two massive wins, they welcomed Sevilla to town just before the international break.
Unexpectedly, the Camp Nou outfit were outplayed by the visitors and were lucky to escape with a point.
Getafe opened their season with a slender 1-0 win over Osasuna. They were held to a goalless draw in the next match at Alaves but bounced back with an impressive 3-0 win over Betis. Their last match ended in a disappointing 3-0 defeat at Sociedad.
Getafe vs Barcelona: Team news
Getafe
Getafe, fortunately, have all of their stars available for selection for Barcelona. Amath Ndiaye could be eased in, but he could still play a part if the coach wishes.
Absentees: None
Doubtful: Amath Ndiaye
Barcelona
Unlike Getafe, Barcelona have quite a few absentees to deal with. First-choice goalkeeper, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, is recovering from his surgery and will sit this one out.
Jordi Alba is nursing a hamstring problem and won’t make the trip to Madrid. And finally, Samuel Umtiti is still not 100% fit and is likely to miss the tie.
Absentees: Jordi Alba, Marc-Andre ter Stegen
Doubtful: Samuel Umtiti
Getafe vs Barcelona: Probable XI
Getafe: Soria; Suarez, Dakonam, Etxeita, Olivera; Nyom, Arambarri, Maksimovic, Cucurella; Mata, Hernandez;
Barcelona: Neto; Roberto, Lenglet, Pique, Dest; Pjanic, Busquets, De Jong; Fati, Messi, Griezmann
Getafe vs Barcelona: Where to watch
India: No Telecast
UK: La Liga TV (Premier Sports)
Stream in India: Facebook Watch on Facebook
Stream in the UK: Premier Sports Player
Getafe vs Barcelona: Prediction
The draw against Sevilla wasn’t encouraging to many Barcelona supporters. They expected Barcelona to run the visitors ragged and put three points on the board. There were chances, of course, but none of them materialised for the Camp Nou outfit.
Technically, they didn’t pass the “first test” with flying colours, but, we believe, the parameters were too harsh, to begin with. Yes, Ronald Koeman managed two great wins in his first two outings, but that level of performance is almost impossible to maintain, especially against an in-form Sevilla.
At Getafe, Barcelona should get more allowance, more time on the ball. They have the likes of Lionel Messi and Ansu Fati to exploit the space, and the defence, too, looks firm enough with Gerard Pique and Clement Lenglet teaming up consistently.
Getafe could make this tie uncomfortable with an early goal, but we expect Barcelona’s quality to reign supreme.
Getafe vs Barcelona predicted scoreline: 1-3
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