Tonight in Spain, there will be a clash between the two leading teams in the league: "Valencia" will host "Barcelona" at home.
The start of the match: 21:45.
Tournament situation:
After twelve matches, "Barcelona" leads the "La Liga" championship with 34 points. Meanwhile, "Valencia", with four points less, occupies the second position.
Teams' form:
Both clubs demonstrate fantastic form in the "La Liga" championship this season and have not experienced a single defeat. Currently, "Barcelona" has a series of four consecutive victories, while their opponents today in Spain have not lost points in eight consecutive matches.
Teams' news:
Last weekend, Simone Zaza, Carlos Soler, and Goncalo Guedes, who did not play, are expected to return to the starting lineup for "Valencia". Meanwhile, Jeison Murillo and Javi Jimenez will continue to be unavailable to help their team.
Barcelona" has suffered several losses, one of them due to disqualification: Gerard Pique, who has collected five yellow cards, will be forced to watch the match from the stands. The Catalan team will also miss the injured Sergi Roberto, Ousmane Dembele, Andre Gomes, Rafinha, and Javier Mascherano.
Predicted starting lineups:
"Valencia": Neto; Montoya, Garay, Gabriel, Gaya; Soler, Parejo, Kondogbia, Guedes; Rodrigo, Zaza.
"Barcelona": Ter Stegen; Semedo, Umtiti, Vermaelen, Alba; Rakitic, Busquets, Iniesta; Messi; Suarez, Alcacer.
Interesting facts:
Currently, "Valencia" has won eight consecutive matches in the "La Liga" championship - a record-breaking streak in the club's history;
In the last 20 meetings with "Barcelona," "Valencia" has achieved only two victories, both of which were away (3:2 - in February 2014 and 2:1 - in April 2016);
Of the last 33 goals "Barcelona" scored against "Valencia," Lionel Messi directly contributed to 26 accurate shots (20 goals and 6 assists);
Santi Mina is the only "Valencia" player who has scored more than one goal against "Barcelona" in his career. The attacker has scored two goals against the Catalan team;
Both teams are the two highest-scoring teams in the "La Liga" championship: "Barcelona" scored 33 goals in the first matches, while "Valencia" scored 32;
In the first twelve matches, "Barca" not only demonstrates the best offense but also leads in defense. The Catalans have only conceded four goals so far;
In the last eight matches in the "La Liga" championship, "Valencia" has sent at least two goals into the opponents' net;
This season in the Spanish championship, "Barcelona" has not yet conceded more than one goal in a single match;
Marcelino, who took over Valencia in the summer, has not experienced a single defeat in all tournaments so far (10 wins, 3 draws). However, in these matches, he will not be able to lead his team because he was sent off to the stands in the last match against "Espanyol" and later punished with a two-match disqualification.
