Venue: Estadi Cornellà-El Prat
Date: 02/01/2016
Kick-off: 3:00 PM GMT / 10:00 AM EST
Television coverage: beIN Sports en Español, beIN Sports USA
Online Streaming: fuboTV (USA), Sky Go (UK)
Match
Espanyol News
Espanyol’s winning run was brought to a halt following a 2-0 defeat against Sevilla on Wednesday but nonetheless, the Catalan side are currently occupying a healthy position in the La Liga table at the moment.
Constantin Galca’s men now prepare for a clash against rivals Barcelona in the Derbi Barceloní on Saturday and the Romanian manager will be hopeful that his side can bank on their good form at home by claiming a shock result.
Injury Doubts: Joan Jordán Moreno, Ruben Duarte, Anaitz Zabala Arbilla, Victor Sanchez Mata, Jose Canas
Espanyol Probable Lineup: P. Lopez; J. Lopez, Roco, Alvaro, Duarte; Diop, Jordan; Asensio, Salva Sevilla, Perez; Caicedo
Barcelona News
Barcelona marked their return back to La Liga with a typical 4-0 thumping of Real Betis a few days ago and now the Catalan giants will be looking to create distance between themselves and the two Madrid teams at the top of the La Liga table when they square off against rivals Espanyol at Estadi Cornellà-El Prat in the Catalan derby on Saturday.
Despite Barcelona’s sensational form though, a clash against Espanyol is not easy – especially away from home this season and it will be interesting to see how Luis Enrique’s men perform on the day.
Injury Doubts: Rafinha
Barcelona Probable Lineup: Bravo; Alves, Piqué, Mascherano, Alba; Busquets, Rakitic, Iniesta; Messi, Suarez, Neymar
Prediction
Barcelona have not been beaten by Espanyol in their last 12 competitive meetings and it is clear to see that the away side go into the clash as favourites.
That being said though, Espanyol do boast a great record of being unbeaten in their last six home matches and one can be sure that Galca’s men will give their illustrious opponents a hard time on the day.
Espanyol 1 – 2 Barcelona
