The first loss of the Hansi Flick era has been suffered, so now, how will the Blaugranes respond? Having been beaten at Monaco, in continental competition, now the Catalan club must rebound in the league. They have a lot more talent and depth than Villarreal, of course, but diving down to the Yellow Submarine is never as easy proposition.
Especially now, given that Flick as a large group of injured players to contend with.
FC Barcelona at Villarreal FYIs
Kickoff: Sun. Sept 15 4:15 CET, El Madrigal, Villarreal, Spain
Barca Preview Material: Team News Starting XI Prediction
Transatlantic Passage: How the Premier League Redefined Soccer in America: LINK
La Liga Standing, Form: Girona 5th, 7 pts, DLWW FC Barcelona 1st, 15 pts, WWWWW
Google Result Probability: Villarreal 25% Draw 23% FC Barcelona 52%
Let’s take a look at what the best lineup is, given whom he still has to work with, for this one.
FC Barcelona Starting XI Prediction at Villarreal
Marc-Andre ter Stegen; Jules Kounde, Inigo Martinez, Pau Cubarsi, Alejandro Balde; Eric Garcia, Marc Casado; Pedri, Raphinha, Lamine Yamal; Robert Lewandowski
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. 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.