Sunday’s La Liga live football action rounds off with a blockbuster encounter between third-placed Barcelona and current runners-up Sevilla at Camp Nou.
Barca headed into March’s international break on the back of a scintillating 4-0 romping of bitter rivals Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang netted a double, while Ronald Araujo and Ferran Torres chipped in with a goal apiece to sink La Liga leaders in the capital.
As for Sevilla, a run of three successive league draws, including an uneventful ‘nil-nil’ stalemate with Real Sociedad last time out, has curtailed their title bid.
Coming into the final nine rounds of fixtures, Julen Lopetegui’s men trail table-topping Madrid by nine points and will need a miracle to lift their first La Liga crown since 1945/46.
Match Preview
Barcelona
Barcelona’s resounding success at the Bernabeu took their unbeaten La Liga streak to 13 matches (W9, D4), including five wins in a row.
Except for a come-from-behind 2-1 win at Elche in early March, Xavi’s men have bagged precisely four goals in five of their last six league victories.
Since losing 1-0 to Real Betis in December, the Catalans have won each of their last four La Liga home games on the trot, scoring an intimidating average of 3.75 goals per match in that sequence.
Unbeaten in their last 18 top-flight H2Hs at Camp Nou (W15, D3), Barca should feel comfortable against Sevilla despite their visitors’ impressive domestic form.
Sevilla
Los Rojiblancos may have drawn their last three La Liga matches, but they still come into this matchday riding on the longest ongoing unbeaten streak in Spain’s top flight.
Indeed, Lopetegui’s men have not lost any of their last 15 league outings (W7, D8), cementing their reputation as the ‘stalemate kings’ in La Liga.
No team have drawn more La Liga fixtures than Sevilla (12) this season, with each of their last five league away games featuring low-scoring stalemates.
Entertainment has been relatively sparse across the Andalusians’ travels this term, as their 15 away league matches have witnessed the league-lowest average of 1.33 goals.
Team News
Barcelona have received a massive injury boost down the final stretch of March’s international break.
According to the club’s website, long-term absentee Ansu Fati has returned to training, though he is unlikely to make Xavi’s matchday squad this weekend.
On the other hand, Manchester United loanee Anthony Martial has grown frustrated with a lack of first-team chances at Sevilla and will return to Old Trafford in the summer.
As per ESPN, the Red Devils are looking to include the ex-Monaco ace, who will unlikely reach Lopetegui’s starting XI at Camp Nou, in their offer to land Tottenham Hotspur’s Harry Kane.
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andym
Founder and chief editor of La Liga Blog, Andy fell in love with Spanish football after a university placement year in the Costa Del Sol. His favourite Tapas is Albondigas and on Saturday afternoons, Andy can regularly be found trying to emulate his hero Carles Puyol for his amateur football team.