There is no chance for the weak.

Barcelona will have the opportunity to extend their lead to nine points at the top of La Liga when they host Catalan rivals Espanyol at their temporary home ground, Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, on Sunday afternoon.

Hansi Flick's side thrashed Real Madrid 4-0 in El Clasico last weekend, extending their lead over second-placed Espanyol to six points, while Espanyol, currently 17th in the table, will head into the Barcelona derby after a 4-0 victory over San Tirso in the Copa del Rey.

Latest Barcelona vs Espanyol team news

Barcelona will once again be without Ferran Torres, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Marc Bernal, Andreas Christensen and Ronald Araujo for this weekend's match, while Eric Garcia is a major doubt as the defender is still unavailable after a recent muscle injury.

The home side have not reported any new concerns, so Flick will likely select the majority of players who featured in the match against Real Madrid, but Frenkie de Jong and Dani Olmo have recovered and are competing for a starting place.

De Jong and Olmo could replace Marc Casado and Fermin Lopez, but Gavi may have to accept a reserve role once again, as he continues to recover from a long-term knee injury.

Lewandowski, Yamal, and Raphinha are all in excellent form in the 2024-25 season, and this trio will continue to feature in the penalty area of ​​the Catalan giants.

For Espanyol, Veliz scored a hat-trick in Thursday night's Copa del Rey match against San Tirso and has put himself in contention for a starting spot in this game, with the number 9 potentially partnering Javi Puado in the penalty area.

Pol Lozano had to leave the field shortly after coming on as a substitute in the cup match, and he will now be unavailable due to a muscle problem, but Jose Grangera will return to the squad after recovering from a foot injury.

Fernando Calero and Edu Exposito are still absent due to injury, but there will be further changes from Thursday's match, with Alex Kral, Joan Garcia and Alvaro Tejero among those returning to the squad.

Latest predicted lineups for Barcelona vs Espanyol

barbecue:

Pena; Kounde, Cubarsi, I Martinez, Balde; De Jong, Pedri; Yamal, Olmo, Raphinha; Lewandowski

Espanyol:

Garcia; El Hilali, Kumbulla, Cabrera, Olivan; Tejero, Kral, Gragera, Carreras; Puado, Veliz

Latest football match prediction: Barcelona vs Espanyol

Barcelona will be aiming for their sixth consecutive win across all competitions on Sunday afternoon, and a victory against their Catalan rivals would extend their lead at the top of the table to nine points.

Real Madrid were scheduled to play Valencia on Saturday, but the match was postponed due to devastating floods in Spain, so Barcelona will have the opportunity to extend their nine-point lead over their rivals this week.

Flick's team had an impressive performance at the Bernabeu last time, beating Real Madrid 4-0, with Robert Lewandowski (two goals), Lamine Yamal and Raphinha scoring, a result that followed a 4-1 victory over Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

Barcelona have won 10 and lost one of their 11 league matches this season, scoring a total of 37 goals, and it's hard to see this winning streak stopping, as they are top contenders for their next three matches before the international break against Espanyol, Red Star Belgrade and Real Sociedad, before returning to play away against Celta Vigo.

The 27-time Spanish champions have never lost in their last 26 La Liga matches against Espanyol, and they have won 102 of their 176 games against their Catalan rivals in Spain's top league.

Lewandowski is having an impressive season, scoring 17 goals in 14 appearances, while Raphinha has 10 goals and nine assists in 14 games; Yamal has also shone once again, with six goals and seven assists in the 2024-25 season.

Although Espanyol have struggled against Barcelona in recent history, two of the last three La Liga encounters between the two teams have ended in a draw, including a 1-1 draw in the first leg of the 2022-23 season.

The white and blue team returned to Spain's top league through the Segunda Division playoffs last season, and a combined 10 points from 11 matches placed them 17th in the La Liga standings.

Manolo Gonzalez's team has won three, drawn one, and lost seven of their 11 La Liga matches this season, while conceding 19 goals, the third-worst defensive record in the league.

Espanyol lost 0-2 at home to Sevilla in the league last weekend, but they will enter this match with a 4-0 victory over San Tirso in the first round of the Copa del Rey, with Alejo Veliz scoring a hat-trick.

It's a big demand for Gonzalez's team to face the league leaders this weekend given their form, but they have a big game against Valencia, who are also struggling, next week, before returning from the international break to play Girona.

Predicting the score for Barcelona vs Espanyol

Based on the above football analysis, we and leading football websites worldwide have come up with the following predictions for the Barcelona vs Espanyol match:

• Sportsmole: Barcelona 3-0 Espanyol

• WhoScore: Barcelona 2-0 Espanyol
• Our prediction: Barcelona 3-1 Espanyol

When and where can I watch Barcelona vs Espanyol live?

To watch the Barcelona vs Espanyol match live in La Liga at 10:15 PM on November 3rd, viewers can tune in to K+ Sport, K+PM, or other online sports channels. We wish you enjoyable football viewing moments.

Source: https://baodaknong.vn/nhan-dinh-du-doan-barcelona-vs-espanyol-khong-co-co-hoi-cho-ke-yeu-233320.html