Barcelona could go nine points clear at the top of La Liga this weekend if they beat RCD Espanyol at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on Sunday. Hansi Flick’s side destroyed Real Madrid in El Clasico last weekend to open up a six-point advantage and victory over Manolo Gonzalez’s men who occupy 17th in the rankings could stretch that with Los Blancos not in action this weekend due to flash flooding in Valencia.
Barca are chasing their sixth consecutive win across all competitions coming into this one and the opportunity is perfect with Real not in action to whittle that lead down. The Blaugrana crushed Carlo Ancelotti’s side 4-0 with Robert Lewandowski scoring twice just days after smashing Bayern Munchen 4-1 in the UEFA Champions League.
Factor in that Barca are unbeaten in their last 26 meetings with Espanyol with 102 wins from 176 games in La Liga and the 27-time Spanish champions are strong favorites. The visitors will be buoyed by two of their last three meetings finishing as draws but overall the head-to-head record strongly favors the home side for this one.
Espanyol went down to Sevilla in La Liga last time out but beat San Tirso in the Copa del Rey in midweek to restore some confidence. Gonzalez’s side have a big challenge here but a meeting with Valencia after this before the November international break should bring a chance for points with Girona their first opponents after the pause.
Here are our storylines, how you can watch the match and more:
How to watch and odds
Date: Sunday, November 3 | Time: 10:15 a.m. ET
Location: Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys — Barcelona, Spain
Watch: ESPN Deportes | Stream: Fubo (try for free)
Odds: Barca -1000; Draw +1000; Espanyol +2000
Story so far
Barca have won 10 of their 11 games in La Liga so far with 37 goals scored and will fancy themselves against Espanyol, Crvena Zvezda and Real Sociedad before the November internationals. Lewandowski’s stunning form continues with 17 goals while Raphinha has 10 goals and nine assists with Lamine Yamal chipping in six more goals and seven assists. Espanyol were promoted back to La Liga via the playoffs last year and have 10 points from 11 games which places them 17th in the standings. Gonzalez’s men have won three and lost seven with just one draw and their 19 goals conceded in the third worst defensive record in the Spanish topflight.
Team news
Barca: Ferran Torres, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Marc Bernal, Andreas Christensen and Ronald Araujo are all out while Eric Garcia is a serious doubt. Flick should be able to repeat his Real selection more or less but Frenkie de Jong and Dani Olmo could start. The pair could replace Marc Casado and Fermin Lopez which means that Gavi could continue his gradual return from the bench. Prolific trio Lewandowski, Yamal and Raphinha will continue to lead the attack.
Possible Barca XI: Pena; Kounde, Cubarsi, I Martinez, Balde; De Jong, Pedri; Yamal, Olmo, Raphinha; Lewandowski.
Espanyol: Alejo Veliz is in contention after a midweek treble and could play alongside Javi Puado while Pol Lozano is expected to miss out although Jose Gragera should return after his absence. Fernando Calero and Edu Exposito remain out but Alex Kral, Joan Garcia and Alvaro Tejero should be reinstated after some midweek rotation.
Possible Espanyol XI: Garcia; El Hilali, Kumbulla, Cabrera, Olivan; Tejero, Kral, Gragera, Carreras; Puado, Veliz.
Prediction
This one should be straightforward enough for Barca with Espanyol unlikely to put up any real resistance given how impressive Flick’s men have been so far. As the odds suggest, even a draw would be impressive for the visitors so expect a two-goal winning margin for the Blaugrana. Pick: Barca 3, Espanyol 1.
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