Barcelona vs Almeria - La Liga: TV channel, team news, lineups and prediction
- Barcelona round off 2023 at home to strugglers Almeria
- Barca are winless in three in all competitions
- Almeria are bottom of La Liga having recorded just five points
Barcelona's 2023 concludes on Wednesday evening as they play host to bottom-of-the-table Almeria in La Liga.
Xavi's champions have endured a rocky end to the year and head into this one without a win in three gaes in all competitions. Following Saturday's draw at Valencia, Barca are now six points adrift of league leaders - potentially for the time being - Real Madrid after they thrashed Villarreal 4-1 on Sunday.
With Xavi suffering his first difficult spell since Barca's European exit in the spring, the former midfielder desperately needs to oversee a victory on Wednesday.
Almeria have notched just five points from 17 games this season and are without a win. Nothing less than a convincing win will do for the hosts.
Here's 90min's preview of Barcelona's final La Liga fixture of 2023.
What time does Barcelona vs Almeria kick-off?
- Location: Barcelona, Spain
- Stadium: Estadi Olympic Lluis Companys
- Date: Wednesday 20 December
- Kick-off Time: 18:00 GMT / 13:00 ET / 10:00 PT
- Referee: Guillermo Cuadra Fernandez
- VAR: Eduardo Prieto Iglesias
Barcelona vs Almeria H2H Record (Last Five Games)
- Barcelona: 4 wins
- Almeria: 1 win
- Draws: 0
Current form (all competitions)
- Barcelona: WWLLD
- Almeria: LDLLD
How to watch Barcelona vs Almeria on TV and live stream
Country | TV channel/live stream |
|---|---|
United Kingdom | LaLigaTV, Viaplay Sports 1, Viaplay UK |
United States | ESPN+ |
Canada | TSN+ |
Barcelona team news
Barca's squad has thinned ahead of Christmas and Xavi is unlikely to welcome back any injured stars for this midweek clash.
Gavi, Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Inigo Martinez are all long-term absentees, while Marcos Alonso should return in the new year.
With Barca breaking up for the festive period after Wednesday's game, Xavi won't make too many changes from Saturday's XI. Ferran Torres could come in for Joao Felix.
Barcelona predicted lineup vs Almeria
Barcelona predicted lineup vs Almeria (4-3-3): Pena; Cancelo, Araujo, Christensen, Balde; De Jong, Gundogan, Pedri; Raphinha, Lewandowski, Ferran.
Almeria team news
Marc Pubill is a doubt with a knee injury and is unlikely to start. Marko Milovanovic and Luis Suarez - not that one - are both set to return from their respective injuries in the new year.
An ankle issue will likely keep Ibrahima Kone out.
Almeria predicted lineup vs Barcelona
Almeria predicted lineup vs Barcelona (3-4-3): Maximiano; Chumi, Montes, Gonzalez; Pozo, Robertone, Lopy, Akieme; Arribas, Baptistao, Embarba.
Barcelona vs Almeria score prediction
Barcelona may not be the most exciting of watches and their recent form suggests the atmosphere could be tense in Catalonia on Wednesday.
Fortunately, Almeria are that bad that even an out-of-sorts Blaugrana should get the job done. The visitors are winless this season with the worst-defensive record in the division. While they may get on the scoresheet, Barca surely win this with conviction, right?
Prediction: Barcelona 4-1 Almeria
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