Barcelona missing three players for Real Sociedad clash

The Catalan outfit were confirmed as La Liga champions for the 2022-23 campaign when they recorded a 4-2 victory over Espanyol last weekend.

Gavi picked up his 10th yellow card of the season in the Barcelona derby, so the midfielder will not be available for selection against top-four hopefuls Real Sociedad through suspension.

Xavi had otherwise been expected to have a full squad available, but Pedri and Araujo are both out of the match with minor muscular problems.

Neither issue is said to be serious, but with the title secured, Xavi is not prepared to risk the fitness of his players, so the duo will not feature against the Basque outfit.

There is a position in the squad for 19-year-old Ander Astralaga, who will be bidding to make his first-ever appearance for the club, while Pablo Torre has also been included.

Ansu Fati, Ferran Torres, Marcos Alonso, Jordi Alba, Franck Kessie and Eric Garcia will also be among those hoping to earn starts in the latter stages of the campaign.

Xavi, speaking during his press conference on Friday, said that Barcelona want to finish their league season "with a good feeling" despite already securing the championship with four games to spare.

"We are happy and proud. Tomorrow's match is to be enjoyed by the fans. The fans needed to celebrate things. We want to finish the league with a good feeling, we still have objectives such as the top scorer, the team with the fewest goals conceded and clean sheets," said the head coach.

"I was very happy to win the Super Cup, but winning La Liga gives us a lot of stability. It has been a magical week. The club has made an extraordinary effort to get to where we are.

"I would give it a 'B' (the season). We haven't competed in Europe and we didn't do well in the second leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final.

"We want to play a better role in the Champions League, it is our main objective. We haven't lived up to the level that this club demands in Europe, we are aware of that."

Barcelona will travel to Real Valladolid in their next match on May 23 before finishing their campaign with games against Mallorca (H) and Celta Vigo (A).

Barcelona squad vs. Real Sociedad:

Ter Stegen, Astralaga, Pena; Christensen, Alonso, Alba, Roberto, Kounde, E Garcia, Balde; Busquets, Kessie, F de Jong, Torre; Dembele, Lewandowski, Fati, F Torres, Raphinha