The season has already been quite stressful for FC Barcelona. La Blaugrana have already seen themselves come face to face with various opponents this season that have jeopardized their progression. Ultimately, for better or for worse, Barcelona are now in a critical position.
The Catalan giants are in for an even tougher ride ahead, as they look to have dangerous encounters in quick succession. However, what makes these encounters especially dangerous is another story altogether.
As highlighted by SPORT, the upcoming opponents for Barcelona are Athletic Bilbao and Real Betis. The latter welcomes the Catalan giants first at the Benito Villamarin. Set in La Liga, the match will be the first of the two great tests for Xavi’s Barcelona.
At the moment, Betis have an astounding record at that home ground. Thus far this season, they remain unbeaten in their own stadium. With 6 wins and 4 draws to their name, all ten games played in the Villamarin have not made Betis taste defeat.
However, there is a slight ray of hope for Barça too. In the last 10 visits to the stadium of Real Betis, the Catalans have also not tasted defeat. With 6 consecutive victories as well, La Blaugrana also have a streak to maintain. Yet, the danger also lies in Betis being at their best on the day.
Moreover, Manuel Pellegrini’s side are no slouches in terms of their performances either. All in all, the team from Andalusia will be a great rival, and one that could make Barcelona suffer. As it stands, no more points can be dropped by La Blaugrana in any event.
As they already sit behind Girona and Real Madrid with sizeable gaps, Barcelona need to win to keep their La Liga hopes alive. In the scenario that they lose this game or drop points, the Spanish league could well and truly get away from Barcelona.
Moreover, within 75 hours, Barça then take on Athletic Bilbao in the Copa Del Ray. Heading over to San Mames, the Catalans will need to guarantee victory over a very in-form Basque side. It is even more coincidental that the last time they even tasted defeat came at the hands of Barcelona themselves.
This defeat came in October, and needed a big cameo from Marc Guiu to win the game for Barcelona. However, since then, there have been no stops and no barriers for Ernesto Valverde’s men. Fourteen games in a row have gone unbeaten for them since, and they seem to have no intentions of stopping.
A loss here, however, would mean the end of the road for Barcelona in the King’s Cup. Given that every competition left is now non-negotiable for Barça, the Copa Del Ray is no exception. It is arguably the competition that offers them the greatest chance of silverware, and Xavi will want to make sure that hope stays alive.