It seems that nothing can go wrong for Barcelona these days. Despite a few injuries to key players, the team is undefeated in La Liga this season and is a healthy eight points ahead of their rivals Real Madrid.
Superstar Lionel Messi is in top form with eight goals during the season. But he was also spotless for Argentina last week with 3 goals in 2 games, both winning efforts. But Messi is not the only one playing well. Andres Iniesta seems to be back in form after a strong match against France for Spain.
But in their first game back after the break, they get to take on Deportivo La Coruña who is currently in 18th place. According to ESPN, Coach Tito Vilanova may rest Messi in order to give him a well earned break. The fact the Deportivo is the opponent makes this decision even easier and healthier for the club and its super star.
Deportivo meanwhile will likely be happy that Messi may not be on the pitch, but they know that the rest of Barcelona will pose a threat. Deportivo boss Jose Luis Oltra stated that 'We know in advance that we will not be able to impose our style, we will not have the ball and we're going to have to do other things. But good teams are those who adapt to all circumstances and we hope we can do that."
The team is newly promoted from La Liga's second division and they have had a tough time adapting to the big league. Through seven matches, they have only won once: their first match of the season against Osasuna. They followed that up with three straight draws, but have not earned a point since with three straight losses, including a 5-1 destruction by Real Madrid.
All indications show that they might lose their forth straight against the league's best team, but Oltra states that that is not most important thing. ''If we do have to lose I would rather we left a positive image of a daring team.''
Prediction: Barcelona should nullify Deportivo 6-0. They have not had a tremendous match since the opener against Real Sociedad and are due for a big one. Even if Messi sits on the bench, I think Villa and Pedro can score big goals.
Schedule: 4 p.m. EDT
- Contribute to this Story:
- Send us a tip
- Send us a photo or video
- Suggest a correction
