Barcelona vs. Espanyol: Issues and Decisions That Will Shape Catalan Derby
Espanyol make the short trek across town to neighbours Barcelona in one of the highlights of the fixture calendar for both Catalan teams.
El Derbi Barceloni has woven a rich and varied tapestry throughout La Liga over the years and rarely fails to disappoint.
The Blaugrana enjoy home advantage and will want to press that home in this game in order to get the right result, enabling them to stay on the coattails of runaway leaders Real Madrid.
Espanyol have struggled this season, and while a mid-table berth appears comfortable, they are only four points from second bottom.
Let's take a look at what might shape the outcome of this one.
Advantage Barca
1 of 5
The weight of recent history falls heavily the way of Barca as far as this fixture is concerned.
In the last 10 years, the local rivals have met on no less than 25 occasions in all competitions with the visitors winning just twice, one of which was at Camp Nou in 2009, per Fussball Wettpoint.
The Blaugrana have taken all three points on 16 of those occasions, and given the current form of both sides, it would be a huge surprise if that run didn't continue.
Espanyol Can't Win Away from Home
2 of 5
Try as they might, Espanyol can't buy a win away from home.
Six league games and one Catalunya Cup match at neutral Girona has failed to see the Periquitos emerge victorious.
Manager Sergio hasn't been able to find the solution against any team, including lowly Cordoba, the only team without a win in La Liga this season.
Eight losses from 10 away games, losing at both half-time and full-time in their last three and conceding to goals in each of their last three away from the Power 8 Stadium, per WhoScored.com, are probably not statistics that Sergio wants to dwell on.
The last place Espanyol would probably want to find themselves at next is the home of their cross-town rivals.
Best Defence in the League, Second-Best Attack
3 of 5
To put into perspective the challenge that Espanyol have ahead of themselves, we only need look at just how well Barcelona have been playing.
Much has been made of the defeats to Real Madrid and Celta Vigo, but the fact remains that Barca have by far the best defence in the league, and only Real outscore them at the other end.
A local derby can often throw up a surprise result or two, but even the most fervent of Espanyol supporters must be fearing the worst ahead of this one.
Crosses Will Be a Feature from the Away Side
4 of 5
The one area where Espanyol do at least create chances is from the wide areas, with both Salva Sevilla and Lucas Vazquez getting balls into the box at every opportunity.
Given that it still remains Barca's Achilles' heel, there is potential for the visitors to profit if they can take advantage of Dani Alves' and Jordi Alba's forays upfield.
Felipe Caicedo and Sergio Garcia both profited from the same against Levante, so Barca will need to be on their guard.
Champions League Looms Large for Barca
5 of 5
A glimmer of hope for the visitors comes in the way of the Champions League and the arrival of Paris Saint-Germain to Camp Nou just a few days after this game.
If Barca want to finish top of the group, then it's a game they must win, and with this in mind, manager Luis Enrique could be tempted to rest one or two players.
If we take the Catalunya Super Cup performance and result from earlier this season as a barometer, then the visitors more than held their own against a weakened Blaugrana, only succumbing on penalties.
The team sheets could make interesting reading.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
