Deportivo vs. Barcelona: Team News, Preview, Live Stream and TV Info
With four defeats in five and only one win in their last six, there are an awful lot of questions being asked about Barcelona right now.
Luis Enrique’s side have seen their seemingly unassailable lead at the top of La Liga evaporate over recent weeks, with Atletico Madrid now drawing level on points with them at the top, and Real Madrid just one point behind.
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All three play La Liga matches on Wednesday night, but the fact that Barca’s clash at Deportivo kicks off first (45 minutes before Atletico and two hours before Real) gives them a perfect opportunity to replace pressure lost in recent weeks.
Because while Barca might be having a tough time, Depor are having an horrendous one.
They’ve won just one of their last 19 games in the league and cup, and, sitting nine points above the relegation zone, they’ll be hoping to take advantage of Barca’s drop in standards to record what would be a third successive unbeaten result against them following two 2-2 draws in 2015.
Date: Wednesday, April 20
Time: 7 p.m. BST / 2 p.m. ET
Venue: Riazor, La Coruna
TV Info: Sky Sports 3
Live Stream: Sky Sports
Last 6 Results
Deportivo
Drew 3-3 vs. Malaga
Lost 3-0 vs. Atletico Madrid
Won 2-1 vs. Levante
Drew 1-1 vs. Celta Vigo
Lost 3-1 vs. Las Palmas
Drew 1-1 vs. Sevilla
Barcelona
Drew 2-2 vs. Villarreal
Lost 2-1 vs. Real Madrid
Won 2-1 vs. Atletico Madrid
Lost 1-0 vs. Real Sociedad
Lost 2-0 vs. Atletico Madrid
Lost 2-1 vs. Valencia
Team News
Deportivo
Coach Victor Sanchez has had a torrid time of it in 2016, but he must have been somewhat buoyed by the performance of his Deportivo side in the 1-1 draw at Sevilla last time out on Sunday.
Substitute Oriol Riera grabbed the equaliser with nine minutes to go, but it remains to be seen whether he has done enough to replace the on-loan Luis Alberto in the starting lineup, with Cani also looking to start after replacing Luisinho at half-time.
Federico Cartabia, German Lux and Fabri are all still on the injured list, while Alejandro Arribas is suspended.
Possible XI: Manu, Lopo, Sidnei, Navarro, Juanfran, Cani, Fajr, Borges, Mosquera, Luis Alberto, Lucas Perez.
Barcelona
Gerard Pique—who missed a sitter in the defeat to Valencia—is suspended here, and in the absences of the injured Thomas Vermaelen and Jeremy Mathieu, he is likely to be replaced in the side by Marc Bartra, who was on the bench at the weekend.
Dani Alves should also return to the starting lineup after being overlooked for Sergi Roberto against Valencia, but Luis Enrique is likely to resist the temptation to make major changes to his side despite the poor form, with the big-hitters all poised to keep their places at the Riazor.
Possible XI: Bravo, Alves, Bartra, Mascherano, Alba, Busquets, Rakitic, Iniesta, Neymar, Messi, Suarez.
Key Player
Deportivo: Lucas Perez
With a record that shows he has scored in every other game this season, 16-goal Lucas Perez would have been looking at Barcelona’s struggles in recent matches and licking his lips at the prospect of finding the net here.
A former Atletico Madrid C player who has also had spells in the Ukraine and Greece, Perez has enjoyed by far the best goalscoring season of his career in 2015/16, and it would be no surprise to see him moving on from Depor in the summer.
Barcelona: Neymar
Barcelona’s drop in both standards and form has been mirrored by their Brazilian star Neymar, who just hasn’t been as effective as we know he can be in recent weeks.
He is scoreless in his last six matches for club and country and has just four strikes in his last 12 games, a relative barren spell for one of the greatest players in the world.
You get the sense that once he returns to form, his club will follow suit.
Odds (via Odds Shark)
Deportivo—10/1
Barcelona—1/5
Draw—11/2
