La Liga weekend preview: Barcelona derby takes centre stage
Friday 28 April 2017 16:58, UK
The Barcelona derby becomes the focus of the La Liga title tussle on Saturday night as Barcelona look to defend their narrowest of leads.
Luis Enrique's men head into the weekend top of the table courtesy of their superior head-to-head record over Real Madrid following three straight wins, although Los Blancos have a game in hand.
Barca will be hoping fellow rivals Valencia can do them a favour against their greatest of rivals in the 3.15pm kick-off when they travel to the capital.
Here's a look at the two key clashes…
Espanyol v Barcelona (Saturday 7.45pm, live on Sky Sports 2HD)
Espanyol will have aspirations of halting their neighbours but have not enjoyed victory over them since the turn of the decade.
The mid-table outfit have little else to play for and have collected a solitary point from the last two outings, while they offered resistance in a 4-1 loss at the Nou Camp back in December.
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Luis Suarez bagged a brace in that win and looks set to be restored to Barca's attack after being rested for Wednesday's 7-1 thumping of bottom club Osasuna.
Neymar also returns following his suspension as Enrique enjoys no new injury concerns, with full-backs Sergi Roberto and Jordi Alba set to restored to his line-up after only two defenders were used in the midweek mauling.
Defensive stability remains the key challenge for Barca, with their backline conceding seven times in their last four league games, although Espanyol's record of just three goals from their last five games will ease concerns.
Indeed, they've also failed to score in any of Barca's last five visits, a goalless draw in last season's clash highlight for the home fans since they moved to the at the RCDE Stadium.
With a draw effectively a victory for Espanyol in terms of denting their rivals' title hopes, it looks more a case of when rather than if Barca will break down their hosts.
Sky Bet odds: Espanyol 12/1, Draw 11/2, Barcelona 1/5
Real Madrid v Valencia (Saturday 3.15pm)
There is no such doubts as to whether there will be goals at the Bernabeu on Saturday, with one of the league's most fragile backlines visiting.
Los Che have conceded 13 goals in their last five trips, including a 4-2 loss at the Nou Camp last month, and slipped to a 3-2 home defeat to Real Sociedad on Wednesday night.
Their best defensive display of the season was undoubtedly in the reverse fixture, when they defended an early two-goal lead to prevail 2-1.
A repeat would be a real upset here, with odds of 10/1 with Sky Bet stacked against Voro's men, as Cristiano Ronaldo returns from being rested for a third successive away league game.
They've won all of those trips, with Alvaro Morata once again pushing his case to lead the line, opening the scoring in the opening minute at Deportivo.
The Spaniard has averaged over a goal per 90 minutes this season, over twice as frequent as Karim Benzema, while James Rodriguez, Lucas Vasquez and Isco all also took their chances by finding the net in the 6-2 triumph.
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With such an array of attacking talent in form, the absence of Gareth Bale is hardly being felt, with 15 goals scored in their last four games, while they've scored at least two goals in 12 or their last 13 home games.
However, they've also conceded two or more in each of their last four games, while Tuesday's Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid means Zidane will have to consider further rotation, providing the visitors with a ray of hope.
Sky Bet odds: Real Madrid 2/11, Draw 13/2, Valencia 10/1
Best of the rest…
Atletico are also in action on Saturday as they look to bounce back from a midweek loss to Villarreal when they visit Las Palmas.
The long trip to Gran Canaria is hardly ideal given they visit Real just four days later, while Diego Simeone is without his first-choice centre-back and right-back in Diego Godin and Juanfran, plus Yannick Carrasco.
In the early kick-off, Real Sociedad can climb from seventh to fifth by beating second-from-bottom Granada, who will be relegated if they fail to gain ground on Leganes this weekend.
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Osasuna host Deportivo in Sunday's opener, with anything but a win confirming their relegation, while Leganes can confirm both Granada and Osasuna's drop to the second tier regardless of their results by winning at Eibar at 5.30pm.
The late kick-off sees Celta Vigo prepare for their Europa League semi-final by hosting Athletic Bilbao, who will be far more focused for the clash as they endeavour to qualify for Europe's second-tier tournament.
Then on Monday night, Sevilla travel to Malaga looking to boost their own European qualification aspirations as they head into the weekend level on points with third-placed Atletico.
