Preview: Barça v Villarreal
Friday, 12 November 10, 09:22 AM · Comments (9)
It is true that many of us are looking forward to El Clasico at the end of the month, however, tomorrow we have a home fixture with Villarreal which could well turn out to give us more problems than the game with Madrid. Villarreal have always been a tough opponent and we have only won four out of eleven league games with them at Camp Nou and we haven't beaten them here in the league since November 2006 when goals from Iniesta, Gudjohnsen and Ronaldinho gave us a 4-0 win. Since then we have lost one and drawn twice though we did manage a 1-0 win in a Copa del Rey tie in 2008. On top of that our opponents are in excellent form and haven't lost in La Liga since the opening day back in August, they are currently just two points behind us in the table on 23 points. The ongoing success of Villarreal is really quite remarkable, it doesn't seem to matter when they have lost key players over the years such as Riquelme or Forlan, or when they lost their manager Pelligrini to Madrid a couple of years back, they continue to upset the big teams and are an example of how to achieve success on a limited budget. Marcus Senna will be back for them as he seems to have recovered from a hamstring problem which means they will be at full strength. Barça of course will be without the suspended Gerard Piqué and the injured Gabi Milito which means we will have to field a makeshift defence to deal with the likes of Rossi and Nilmar. Eric Abidal could move to centre back to partner Carles Puyol though I would like to see Marc Bartra given the opportunity. We have a small squad and Guardiola has always said he trusts our youngsters to step up and do a good job. I think Bartra is ready, while Abidal has proved to be somewhat dodgy when he has been asked to play in the middle. It may all seem rather daunting but on the positive side we have an in-form Leo Messi, Andres Iniesta is looking close to his best again and both Pedro and David Villa have started scoring again. I predict a thrilling game with Barça just winning a high scoring contest.
Possible starting XI: Valdés; Alves, Bartra, Puyol, Abidal; Xavi, Busquets, Iniesta; Pedro, Messi, Villa.
My prediction: Barça 3 Villarreal 2
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9 Comments · Add yours
They are saying we are signing Afellay in January for 2-4million, sounds like a good deal, any opinions about him?
It does indeed sound like a good deal but I have one or two concerns. It seems more of a Rosell deal than a Guardiola decision. I read recently that we didn't sign Ozil because Guardiola didn't want to block the way through for the youngsters so I can't see what the difference is here.
The diff IMO Nic is that Afellay costs much less, is older and more experienced, is less of a "star" and therefore wont demand a starting spot as I am sure Ozil would have. Plus from what I have seen and read he is a far more versatile player, able to play left or right mid and left or right wing, or even as a second striker. If we get him for 3-5m it is a bargain and a half.
i share similar concern with nic, that rosell and zubi are doing things against pep's wishes. whether its a good signing or not is almost irrelevant if pep begins to lose faith in upper management and becomes annoyed by their meddling. his long term future is more important than a player.
but saying that, afellay is a super player and for the price we are apparently going to get him for, its a ridiculously good bargain. he's at a higher level than jeffren and some other guys, so as a part of the team, i think he can be very useful. his versatility is something pep will enjoy so we will see if it happens.
onto tonights game, im pretty excited. the villarreal game is always a good one, both teams go out to attack and play good football. its a pleasure in a footballing world that has become more result orientated than ever before. villarreal play some potent attacking play, but i have faith in abidal doing decent enough to fill in at CB.
Since I live in Holland I have been following the Eredivisie for some time now .
As far as Affelay is concerned, he is a good player with decent technical skills . His consistency can be a question mark at times . He is more of a play maker than a goal scorer .
Nevertheless , for the price that PSV would ask for him , he can be a nice addition to strengthen our "bench" . Even if Ozil was actually signed by Barça he would have been sitting on the bench as well .
Our midfield is so good that the ONLY player I can think of who can actually earn a STARTING position is Michael Essien ; the best DM in the world !!
3-5 mil for Afellay, sounds like a steal.
It will be interesting to see what Pep does with the defence, but I for one hope that Abidal stays on the left, where he is best.
Looking forward to a good match between 2 teams who plays great football
Barca 3-1
@ Blau, well what I read was that like with Ozil, Pep has the final say in whether or not we sign Afellay so i wouldnt worry. It seems like Pep is having the final say in these matters.
This is an interesting read on the whole Afellay matter : LINK
Would be a great deal! I bet Affelay understand that he would sit on the bench in Barca. But with pretty much playing time. I dont know about Jeffren. Does he have what it takes to be a Barca player. Im not sure. And Bojan? lets hope!
I thought he was going to be the new Eto! 3-4 years ago, now idont think so. Why, dont loan him out next season! West Ham maybe. And see how he devolps. Damn he looked talented when he took his first steps on Camp Nou!
Abidal at Centre back. The team will play as follows: Valdés; Alves, Puyol, Abidal, Maxwell; Xavi, Busquets, Iniesta, Pedro, Messi, Villa.