Barcelona head to Real Betis on Sunday in a match which could be quite something.
The hosts are having a bit of a bonkers season, scoring goals for fun, but also conceding at a remarkable rate.
They’ve beaten Sevilla 5-3, drawn 4-4 with Real Sociedad and lost 6-3 to Valencia. Simply put, expect goals at the Estadio Benito Villamarin.
Defence
Marc-Andre ter Stegen will return in goal after stepping down in midweek and once again Ernesto Valverde looks to have a straight choice between Nelson Semedo and Sergi Roberto at right-back.
Both men are in decent form and Semedo may just be the fresher and could get the nod ahead of Roberto.
The rest of the defence looks pretty straightforward with Gerard Pique and Thomas Vermaelen in the middle and Jordi Alba at left-back. Samuel Umtiti is back in training but it’s not clear if he’s completely ready to return just yet. Yerry Mina is also available, but this is probably not the game to throw him into.
Midfield
The injuries are racking up in midfield with Ousmane Dembele, Andres Iniesta and Philippe Coutinho all out. There are also doubts over whether Paulinho will be fit after he went off injured in the midweek defeat to Espanyol.
Valverde therefore has plenty of decisions to make particularly as Denis Suarez and Aleix Vidal did little to impress in midweek and may be running out of chances to impress. Andre Gomes could, therefore, come in again.
Otherwise, Gerard Deulofeu has been completely overlooked recently and it’s doubtful if he will come back into the frame. Barcelona B stars Carles Alena and Jose Arnaiz are hovering around the fringes of the first team but do not appear to have fully convinced Valverde yet.
Attack
This is the easy part as Valverde will surely go with a front two of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez. Messi may just be especially fired up having missed a penalty in the defeat to Espanyol which could well spell bad news for Betis.
Even if he’s not then Luis Suarez is on a brilliant run of form and will fancy his chances against a pretty leaky Betis defence.
Possible starting XI: Ter Stegen; Semedo, Pique, Vermaelen, Alba; Rakitic, Paulinho, Busquets, Gomes; Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez.
How do you think Barca should line up against Betis? Let us know your thoughts and line-ups in the comments below!