Barcelona will be desperate to return to winning ways in their round of 16 Copa del Rey clash against Leganes on Thursday evening.
In La Liga, Barca slipped to a 2-0 away defeat at Valencia on Saturday afternoon, leaving them three points behind rivals and new league leaders Real Madrid.
Leganes will be hoping to build on their impressive away draw in the league at Atlético Madrid. An inspiring cup run could have a significant impact in the relegation scrap they currently find themselves in.
Both sides edged their way through the round of 32 by mere one goal margins, with Antoine Griezmann’s late double against Ibiza seeing the Catalans through.
Here’s 90min’s preview of Thursday night’s cup game.
How to Watch on TV
| When Is Kick Off? | Thursday 30th January |
| Where Is it Played? | Camp Nou |
| What Time Is Kick Off? | 18:00 (GMT) |
| TV Channel/Live Stream? | DAZN (Spain) |
| Referee? | Guillermo Cuadra Fernandez |
Team News
Barça continue to contend with several long-term injuries. Ousmane Dembele is still out, though expected to return next month, and Luis Suarez is sidelined for the foreseeable future. Back-up goalkeeper Neto faces a late fitness test, having started in goal for Barça’s previous cup fixture.
Leganes have no fresh injury concerns ahead of Thursday’s contest.
Predicted Lineups
| Barcelona | Ter Stegen; Roberto, Lenglet, Firpo; Semedo, Vidal, Rakitic, Puig, Fati; Griezmann, Messi. |
| Leganes | Soriano; Rosales, Tarin, Bustinza, Silva; Perez, Eraso; Ruibal, Mourid, Braithwaite; Carrillo |
Head to Head Record
When the two sides met earlier in the season, Barcelona triumphed in a 2-1 away win, with Luis Suarez and Arturo Vidal netting the goals.
In the sides’ previous four meetings, Leganes have beaten Barca just once. This came in a 2-1 league win in September 2018.
The last two encounters at Camp Nou have ended in 3-1 victories for the home side, with Lionel Messi scoring four across the two meetings, including a hat-trick back in April 2018.
Recent Form
Barcelona’s form of late has been well below what they are capable of. In truth, they have struggled to maintain the high level of performance that’s expected, eventually costing Ernesto Valverde his job last month.
They slipped to second in the league after their 2-0 defeat at the Mestalla on Saturday, and were beaten in the Supercopa de España semi-final by Atlético Madrid. Since the turn of the new year, Barca have won just one of three league games.
Leganes are unbeaten in their previous two matches. A hard-earned stalemate at Wanda Metropolitano was preceded by their round of 32 1-0 win over CD Ebro.
Here are each side’s previous five results:
| Barcelona | Leganes |
| Valencia 2-0 Barcelona (19/1) | Atlético Madrid 0-0 Leganes (26/1) |
| Ibiza 1-2 Barcelona (22/1) | CD Ebro 0-1 Leganes (23/1) |
| Barcelona 1-0 Granada (19/1) | Leganes 0-3 Getafe CF (17/1) |
| Barcelona 2-3 Atlético Madrid (9/1) | Murcia 0-4 Leganes (11/1) |
| Espanyol 2-2 Barcelona (4/1) | Valladolid 2-2 Leganes (3/1) |
Prediction
After last year’s shock 2-1 defeat to Valencia in the Copa del Rey final, Barcelona will be desperate to regain their Copa crown. No team has won the competition more than the Catalans.
It will be somewhat of a miracle if, at the Nou Camp, Leganes are able to come away with a positive result. However, Barcelona find themselves in somewhat of a slump, so Leganes will feel this is as good a time as any to take on the Spanish giants.
However, the home side should have more than enough to secure victory on Thursday night.
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