Barcelona vs Espanyol

Sports Mole rounds up all of the latest injury and suspension news ahead of Saturday's La Liga clash between Barcelona and Espanyol.

[Adria Pedrosa](/people/adria-pedrosa/) (hernia) [Keidi Bare](/people/keidi-bare/) (ligament) [Robert Lewandowski](/people/robert-lewandowski/) (suspension)

La Liga leaders Barcelona face Espanyol in Derbi Barceloni on Saturday. Here is the preview of both the teams.

Barcelona will approach this game with great excitement because every player is fit, and Xavi will field a solid eleven to maintain their momentum and place on the table. Espanyol will struggle to knock down Barcelona’s tenacious defence, which will be led by Araujo, Christensen, and Kounde. He may not be a particularly innovative player, but his moves on the field are enough to frustrate the opposition. While Espanyol is experiencing a poor season, with only two victories in 14 matches, and now stands in 16th position. Despite the club’s desire to sell him, De Jong has developed into an essential member of the squad, convincing Xavi that he must start every game and could be Busquets’ successor. Their most recent encounter saw the Catalans overcome Osasuna 2-1 thanks to an injury-time goal from Raphinha, earning them the top spot.

Barcelona will be eager to remain firmly atop La Liga when they welcome Espanyol to Camp Nou in Derbi Barceloni on Saturday.

- Barcelona have kept the highest number of clean sheets in the big five European leagues this season (11). Vinicius Souza and Sergi Darder should form the double pivot in the middle of the park. And the duo will look to keep things tight in the middle of the park. And Ferran Torres will likely spearhead the Barcelona attack against Espanyol in Robert Lewandowski’s absence. Benjamin Lecomte should take his spot between the sticks, with Espanyol lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him. Unlike his counterpart in the Barcelona dugout, Diego Martinez has some pressing issues to deal with ahead of the trip to Camp Nou. But the Barcelona captain should sit at the base of the midfield, with Frenkie de Jong and Pedri starting alongside him. And Jordi Alba will likely start as the left-back, with Marc-Andre ter Stegen between the sticks. The curtains will fall on Matchday 15 of the 2022/23 La Liga season on Saturday, with three games scheduled. So Andreas Christensen should pair up with Eric Garcia at the heart of the Barcelona defence against Espanyol. Robert Lewandowski will be unavailable for the next three La Liga games due to a suspension. Barcelona clinched a 1-0 win over Espanyol in the corresponding fixture last season, with Memphis Depay scoring the only goal.

La Liga leaders Barcelona will have Robert Lewandowski available for Saturday's clash with local rivals RCD Espanyol after his three match suspension was at ...

[House of Champions](https://link.chtbl.com/QueGolazo), a daily CBS Sports soccer podcast, bringing you top-notch analysis, commentary, picks and more. Leandro Cabrera is back from suspension and Martin Braithwaite could feature against his former club after his free transfer move. Franck Kessie and Sergi Roberto are both included while Alejandro Balde and Marcos Alonso could start at full back with Jules Kounde and Eric Garcia at the heart of the defense. He was shown a red card in the last game before the World Cup break, away to Osasuna. Raphinha and Ousmane Dembele are expected to start while Gavi could miss out on a starting berth if Frenkie de Jong starts. After getting booked twice in the first half, his side was left with ten men but still managed to win the game 2-1.

Barça return to action for the final match of 2022 looking to win the Derby and stay top of the table.

And three big points are on the line to stay ahead of Barça are almost inexplicably bad coming off an international break, but the availability of Lewandowski is a big boost. But the good news is that Robert Lewandowski’s ban has been lifted at least for this one, so having the world’s best goalscorer is an easy way to overcome a poor performance. These are strange circumstances, and on top of everything there is a Catalan Derby to play. They will make it really tough for Barça, and Xavi Hernández will need to come up with a strong gameplan to break down a stubborn Espanyol defense and find enough goals to win even if they’re not playing at their best, which is likely considering these unusual circumstances. They are also notoriously bad in the first game after an international break, but they’ve never had a seven-week international break before.

Sports Mole provides score predictions and previews for all of today's La Liga fixtures, including Barcelona vs. Espanyol.

[> Click here to read our full preview for this match](/football/real-sociedad/preview/preview-real-sociedad-vs-osasuna-prediction-team-news-lineups_502977.html) [Villarreal vs. Osasuna](/football/real-sociedad/preview/preview-real-sociedad-vs-osasuna-prediction-team-news-lineups_502977.html) (Saturday, 3.15pm) However, we are struggling to separate them here, as Valencia will be full of confidence following their success over Real Betis before the campaign was halted. This has all of the makings of a very interesting match between two impressive teams. A home victory to nil seems the most likely outcome on Saturday, as Barcelona should have too much for their rivals in this contest. Espanyol](/football/barcelona/barcelona-derby/preview/preview-barcelona-vs-espanyol-prediction-team-news-lineups_502987.html) (Saturday, 1.00pm)

WELCOME TO THE SPOTIFY CAMP NOU!!! After two long months, the Greatest Stadium on Earth finally opens its doors for a Barcelona men's match again as the ...

This is a Barcelona community and we don’t need to offend one another. This should be fun, and you’re welcome to join us to follow and comment all the action. Barça will play their first game after the World Cup and are looking for three big points to stay top of the table going into 2023, but it won’t be easy as Espanyol know how to make things tough in a derby.

Barcelona will face Espanyol in their next LaLiga 2022-23 fixture. Viacom 18 has the broadcasting rights of LaLiga 2022-23 in India.

Vinicius Souza and Sergi Darder in midfield will have to utilize the possession to the maximum with Barcelona set to dominate the game. Viacom 18 possesses the broadcasting rights of LaLiga 2022-23 in India. Barcelona versus Espanyol will be telecasted on the Sports18 network and streamed on the Voot app from 6:30 PM IST. Barcelona have been in fine form in the league with five wins in their last five games. Espanyol are in a relegation battle this term and with no wins in their last five matches, they find They have dropped out of the Champions League which caused a lot of furore

It's a different story for Xavi's side, who will finish the calendar year top of the tree if they continue their unbeaten streak against their city rivals, ...

15 Barcelona have had Robert Lewandowski declared available for the game, despite being sent off in Barcelona's last league game before the World Cup, against Osasuna. So, Espanyol have been told that any fans wearing club colours won't be allowed in the Camp Nou today. 6 4 3 1

LaLiga Santander is back after the World Cup break, and Barcelona are eager to regain top spot that they held prior to the Qatar tournament. Xavi Hern.

They linger just a place above the relegation zone and are under intense pressure to turn around their poor form. The Catalan coach will not have all of his World Cup stars available but he will be able to count on Robert Lewandowski after his suspension was momentarily overturned. A victory for the Catalans will put them back atop of LaLiga Santander after Real Madrid's 2-0 win over Valladolid on Friday.