In this 15th week match, on Saturday Dec 31st, Barcelona hosts Espanyol in a La Liga match. Weather on match day is looking like a cloudy and cool day, with daytime temperatures of only 15 degrees, which is great football weather. In their last match, 1st placed Barcelona, recorded a 2-1 win against Osasuna. David García struck first for Osasuna in the 6th minute, then Lopez tied it up for Barcelona in the 48th minute But fortunately they were able to complete the comaback victory in the 85th minute on a goal by Raphinha. Barcelona is on a hot streak lately, with only 1 loss in their last 10 matches, while espanyol is fresh off their 1-0 shutout win against Atlético Paso. Melamed Ribaudo struck first for Espanyol in the 80th minute, and that was all the excitement the two teams could muster At the end of 90 a dissapointed Atlético Paso couldn’t manage to score, and Espanyol took the shutout win. Espanyol is looking for direction having earned 14 points in their last 10 matches.
This will be the first match for these two teams against eachother this season. Last season Barcelona won the head to head battle with 1 win and 1 draw.
Espanyol is having problems scoring lately. Their top scorers, Joselu and Edu Expósito each only have 1 goal in their last 5. Ferrán Torres has been the most effective weapon for Barcelona lately. The Spanish midfielder has netted 2 goals in his last five matches
Xavier Hernández Creus’s Barcelona squad will be without Gerard Piqué, Robert Lewandowski and Franck Kessié, while Adrià Pedrosa and Dani Gómez are unavailable to play for Espanyol.