Preview: Barcelona vs. Osasuna - prediction, team news, lineups

The midweek fixture represents Barcelona's first outing since Xavi revealed that he would be leaving his position as head coach at the end of the season.

Match preview

Xavi outlined his intention to leave in the summer after coming under scrutiny following an inconsistent campaign, which has been highlighted in Barcelona's last five results.

After falling to a heavy 4-1 defeat to rivals Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup final, the Blaugrana returned to winning ways with away victories over Unionistas and Real Betis, before they were stopped in their tracks by a 4-2 defeat after extra time in Wednesday's Copa del Rey clash with Athletic Club.

Following their quarter-final exit from the cup, Barcelona looked set to respond with a win when they fought back from two goals down to establish a 3-2 lead over Villarreal thanks to strikes from Ilkay Gundogan and Pedri as well as an Eric Bailly own goal.

Unfortunately for Barcelona and Xavi, the Yellow Submarine staged a dramatic comeback to score three late goals and condemn the reigning La Liga champions to a 5-3 loss, which leaves them in fourth place and 11 points adrift of leaders Girona.

Although Xavi's decision has provided some clarity about his future, he will still be under pressure to spark an upturn in fortunes, especially with Athletic Club sitting just two points behind them in fifth position.

The Blaugrana will have the chance to extend that gap to five points on Wednesday, and they will certainly fancy their chances of beating Osasuna, having won each of their last six head-to-head meetings, including a 2-0 win in the Spanish Super Cup semi-final

Osasuna have taken four points from their last two games after returning to league action following defeats to Barcelona and Real Sociedad in the Super Cup and Copa del Rey respectively.

Juan Areso scored an 80th-minute winner to guide his team to a 3-2 win over Getafe, before Ante Budimir netted a second-half equaliser to ensure Saturday's away clash with Sevilla finished in a 1-1 draw.

Having won seven, drawn five and lost nine of their 21 La Liga matches, Osasuna are currently sitting in 12th place in the standings, knowing that a win on Wednesday would move them into the top half of the table.

While claiming three points may prove difficult, Los Rojillos will at least fancy their chances of avoiding defeat after losing just one of their last seven league matches (W3, D3).

However, Osasuna have struggled on their travels of late, having drawn two and lost four of their last six away league games since beating Alaves in October.

If the visitors can end their winless away run, it would represent their first win over Barcelona since recording a 2-1 victory in July 2020.

Barcelona La Liga form:

L

D

W

W

W

L

Barcelona form (all competitions):

W

L

W

W

L

L

Osasuna La Liga form:

D

W

L

W

W

D

Osasuna form (all competitions):

W

W

L

L

W

D

Team News

Barcelona are still having to cope with a lengthy injury list, which includes Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Alejandro Balde, Marcos Alonso and Gavi.

Sergi Roberto and Raphinha are also expected to miss out, while Inigo Martinez is unlikely to be available despite stepping his recovery from a muscle injury.

Manchester City loanee Joao Cancelo could be presented his first start since overcoming a knee injury after featuring as a half-time substitute against Villarreal.

Xavi could decide to make further changes from Saturday's defeat, with Pau Cubarsi, Ferran Torres and Pedri all pushing for starting spots for the midweek fixture.

As for the visitors, Chimy Avila is closing in on a return to fitness, but Wednesday's contest will come too soon for the 29-year-old forward.

After featuring as a substitute in the last two matches, Areso could come into the side to make his 15th league start of the season.

Osasuna boss Jagoba Arrasate could also be tempted to make a couple more changes in a bid to freshen up his side, with Aimar Oroz and Jose Manuel Arnaiz in contention to start against the reigning La Liga champions.

Barcelona possible starting lineup:

Pena; Kounde, Araujo, Cubarsi, Cancelo; Pedri, De Jong, Gundogan; Yamal, Torres, Lewandowski

Osasuna possible starting lineup:

Herrera; D Garcia, Catena, Cruz; Areso, Oroz, Munoz, Gomez; Budimir, Arnaiz

We say: Barcelona 2-1 Osasuna

Barcelona may be struggling to find a consistent run of form, but they will take confidence from the fact they have already beaten Osasuna on two occasions this season.

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