After a disappointing draw against Betis and a surprising home defeat against UD Las Palmas, FC Barcelona is determined to avoid further surprises against Leganés this Sunday. The team will have to do without the services of the suspended Hansi Flick, but some rotations in the starting XI could be considered, although there probably won’t be many.
The Blaugrana have been inconsistent since their resounding victory in El Clásico, losing their top spot in the standings. They urgently need points from these final two fixtures of 2024 – the first against Leganés this Sunday, followed by a crucial clash against Atlético Madrid next week, both at home.
A notable absence will be Flick, who will serve a two-match suspension, with Marcus Sorg taking over coaching responsibilities from the bench. The team will be hoping to build on the winning momentum they displayed at Dortmund, where they played 45 minutes of top-level football and produced a second 45 with a clinical finish.
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Barça will still count on the usual flair of Lamine Yamal and Raphinha, but will also welcome a special guest: Ferran Torres, who scored two goals at Signal Iduna Park after coming on as a substitute. Against Leganés, the Catalan team could make some adjustments . Raphinha, who celebrated his 28th birthday today, finished the game in Dortmund with some muscle overuse issues, which could see him start on the bench to give Ferran Torres the opportunity to start.
Other potential changes Flick could consider include changes to midfield with the possibility of Gavi or Frenkie de Jong taking place, as well as Ronald Araujo, who played his last match for Barcelona on May 19. The Uruguayan was injured while representing his national team in late July and subsequently underwent hamstring surgery. He was cleared to return to training a week ago, but Araujo raises some doubts about Flick’s proposed new defensive setup, which incorporates a forward defense aimed at catching opponents in an offside position.
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This meeting, corresponding to the 17th day of La Liga, will take place this Sunday, December 15 at 9:00 p.m., local time. In Mexico, kick-off will be at 3:00 p.m., while in Argentina it will be at 6:00 p.m.
The clash between Barça and Leganés will take place at the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium in Montjuïc. The Blaugrana play all their home matches there while awaiting the completion of the Camp Nou renovations. Montjuïc has a capacity of around 50,000 spectators.
This La Liga match between the city giants and visitors Leganés will be broadcast live on DAZN LaLiga (M55 O113) and DAZN LaLiga 2 (M58 O274), two channels on the DAZN platform. Additionally, fans will be able to follow the action on LaLiga TV Bar, which is a channel on the Movistar Plus+ platform.
