FC Barcelona are obviously heavily favored to beat Red Star Belgrade on Wednesday night, and for good reason. Barcelona are absolutely rolling right now, and they will look to keep their red hot form going in continental competition. Meanwhile Red Star Belgrade are way down near the bottom of the (expanded this year) UEFA Champions League standings.
On paper this should be a rout, and with that in mind, Hansi Flick may do some squad rotation for this one.
UEFA Champions League Matchday 4 of 8
FC Barcelona at Red Star Belgrade
Kickoff: Wed. Nov. 6, 8pm, Red Star Stadium, Belgrade, Serbia
FC Barcelona Preview Material: Team News Starting XI Prediction
UCL Standing, Form: FC Barcelona 10th, 6 pts, +7 GD, LWW Red Star Belgrade 33rd, 0 pts, -9 GD, LLL
The likes of Pedri, Dani Olmo, Raphinha and Marc Casado could all get a rest for this UCL clash.
FC Barcelona Starting XI Prediction at Red Star
Inaki Pena; Jules Kounde, Pau Cubarsi, Inigo Martinez, Hector Fort; Frenkie de Jong, Gavi; Lamine Yamal, Fermin Lopez, Ansu Fati; Robert Lewandowski
Prediction: FC Barcelona 3, Red Star 0
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG.org. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.