The Catalans of FC Barcelona arrive at the Estadio De La Ceramica to take on 13th-placed Villarreal on matchday three of La Liga EA Sports with the hopes of taking away all possible points to regain their own footing as they look to compete and retain their league title.
Xavi Hernandez and his men will have prepared well for this encounter against Quique Setien’s side, and they now look to make the most of this game despite players like Pedri, Araujo, and Raphinha all being unavailable for FC Barcelona.
With the game set to soon commence, the starting line-up has been released by FC Barcelona to represent the club against their solid Villarreal opposition.
In between the sticks, German goalkeeper Marc Andre Ter Stegen starts as he looks to continue his fine run of clean sheets and also commands his team from the back as one of the leaders and captains of the team.
The central defenders are comprised of French star Jules Kounde and Danish defender Andreas Christensen, as they will look to minimize the amount of chances Villarreal are awarded for Ter Stegen to face.
The fullback positions are occupied by Barcelona captain Sergi Roberto on the right flank and Spanish veteran Marcos Alonso on the left, who reportedly takes the place of a young Alejandro Balde who suffered from ankle discomfort not too long ago.
The midfield sees former Girona star Oriol Romeu occupy the pivot position, while German midfielder Ilkay Gundogan and Dutch maestro Frenkie De Jong take up the most advanced roles in the midfield.
The wingers in the team are 16-year-old academy wonderkid Lamine Yamal, who continues to shine for Barcelona, and Gavi on the left wing as a false winger expected to help out his fellow midfielders.
Rounding off the frontline as the spearhead of the attack is Polish striker Robert Lewandowski, who will be hoping to finally make his mark in terms of goal-scoring this season.
