Barcelona will make the trip across Catalonia to face Girona in La Liga on Saturday afternoon.
Xavi’s side have very little to play for in the final weeks of the season as they now sit 11 points off league leaders Real Madrid. However, should Barca fail to win this weekend and their Clasico rivals beat Cadiz earlier in the day, then they will have officially surrendered their La Liga crown.
Girona have been one of the surprise packages of the season across Europe and currently sit third in La Liga, knowing a victory at home to Barcelona will see them leapfrog the five-time European champions. Michel’s side won the reverse fixture back in December, beating their Catalan foes 4-2 on the road.
Here is 90min’s guide to Girona vs Barcelona.
Girona vs Barcelona H2H record (Last Five Games)
Current form (all competitions)
|
Girona |
Barcelona |
|---|---|
|
Las Palmas 0-2 Girona – 27/04/24 |
Barcelona 4-2 Valencia – 29/04/24 |
|
Girona 4-1 Cadiz – 20/04/24 |
Real Madrid 3-2 Barcelona – 21/04/24 |
|
Atletico Madrid 3-1 Girona – 13/04/24 |
Barcelona 1-4 PSG – 16/04/24 |
|
Girona 3-2 Real Betis – 31/03/24 |
Cadiz 0-1 Barcelona – 13/04/24 |
|
Getafe 1-0 Girona – 16/04/24 |
PSG 2-3 Barcelona – 10/04/24 |
|
Country |
TV channel / live stream |
|---|---|
|
United Kingdom |
ITV4, ITVX, Premier Sports 1, Spremier Sports Player, LaLigaTV |
|
United States |
ESPN+, ESPN Deportes |
|
Canada |
TSN+ |
Girona have a number of fitness concerns to deal with ahead of Barca’s visit, with three players guaranteed to be absent. That trio is made up of Juanpe, Joel Roca and Ricard Artero.
There are also question marks over the availability of striker Cristhian Stuani and midfielder Borja Garcia, the former scoring and assisting in the reverse fixture between the sides.
Girona predicted lineup (4-2-3-1): Gazzaniga; E. Garcia, Lopez, Blind, Gutierrez; Herrera, A. Garcia; Couto, Martin, Savio; Dovbyk.
Barcelona have their own fitness issues to worry about with long-term absentees Alejandro Balde and Gavi still sidelined. They have been joined in the treatment room by Frenkie de Jong, who won’t play again this season after suffering an ankle injury in El Clasico.
There shouldn’t be any major surprises in the starting lineup for Barca, with Pedri perhaps returning from the off. Andreas Christensen could feature alongside him in his new defensive midfield role, while Robert Lewandowski will be in confident mood up top after scoring a hat-trick last time out.
Barcelona predicted lineup (4-3-3): Ter Stegen; Kounde, Araujo, Cubarsi, Cancelo; Pedri, Christensen, Gundogan; Yamal, Lewandowski, Raphinha.
Girona have already shown that they are more than a match for the top teams in La Liga, including Barcelona. After a difficult few weeks for Xavi’s side, the hosts will be aiming to take advantage of a potential lack of spark.
However, Barca’s quality and the desire to delay Real Madrid’s coronation should make this a great battle, with both sides having almost identical league records when it comes to scoring and conceding goals.
Prediction: Girona 2-2 Barcelona
READ THE LATEST LA LIGA NEWS, RUMOURS & GOSSIP
Read More: World News | Entertainment News | Celeb News
90 Mins
