MATCHDAY – Barça VS Villarreal CF
Tonight at 21:30 CET, Barça visit the Estadi La Ceramica for matchday 30 of LaLiga Santander against Villarreal. And trust me when I say, it’s gonna be a good one.
Tonight, we will face a team that had good seasons for quite some years. they had been in the top 10 of LaLiga, earning themselves a spot in the Europa League. In addition, they evenchallenged for a spot in the Champions League in some of those seasons. But this season, was nothing, like their previous seasons.
2018/19- Tough for Villarreal
The team had set their bars high from the very beginning of the season. Purchasing new players with their top signing being the former Gunner man Santi Cazorla. The veteran midfielder left Arsenal due to many injury problem. In addition, they brought in a new coach but little did they know how their season was going to end up like: Disappointment after disappointment. However, with the sack of two coaches and the appointment of Calleja some weeks ago, there are slight improvements such as switching to the 3-4-3 formation. Even though this is a risky formation considering how often the players make individual errors. However, their wingers have improved drastically which has led to a better attacking power, but that’s about it.
Current form
Villarreal have just come from a 3-2 loss to Celta on the weekend in which they bottled a 2-0 lead. In addition, they currently sit at the 17th position, just one point above the relegation zone. That means the bridge between them and the relegation zone is as thin as a strand of hair.
The current status of Barça
On the other side, Barca have just come off a 2-0 victory at home against the local rivals Espanyol in the weekend’s clash. Therefoe, they are oozing with confidence. But, the sinking ‘Yellow Submarine’ are on the verge of falling into the second division. Hence, this match is a do or die for them. In addition, a win would help them stay in the league. But a loss would only mean one thing and that is a fall into the relegation zone. So we should be very careful and tactically aware going into this game. It’s often the smartest teams that come out on top from these kind of tricky games.
However, the coach is aware of the busy and crucial schedule we have ahead of us. We will host Athletico Madrid and then travel to Manchester for the pursue of our Champions League glory. Valverde should rest our heavy weights to make sure they are fully fit for the return of the Champions League. In addition, he should give chance to some of the youngsters such as Alena. Regardless, prepare yourselves for a rollercoaster ride.
Special thank you to @tikitaka-dna from Instagram.
