1+ week, 2+ day ago (298+ words) After two years of construction, Barcelona will finally return to Camp Nou to host Athletic Club for the 13th match day of La Liga. With nine wins, one draw and two losses, Barcelona continues to excel on offense, but struggle at the back. Hansi Flick's men have scored a league-high 32 goals, but also conceded 15, which is a cause for concern. Heading into this home fixture, Barcelona will be riding the momentum of a thrilling 4-2 victory over Celta Vigo last time out. On the other hand, Athletic Club has faced a bit more struggle. The Basque club sits at seventh in La Liga, with five wins, two draws and five losses. With a 1-0 win over Real Oviedo last weekend, Athletic narrowly avoided a fourth straight loss. Can they hold up on the road? Here's everything you need to know about Barcelona vs....

5+ day, 8+ hour ago (255+ words) One of the most anticipated matches of the fifth match week the Champions League this season is Chelsea hosting FC Barcelona at Stamford Bridge. Both teams have the same points and record in the Champions League after four matches played. FC Barcelona is 11th in the UCL table with a +5 goal difference, while Chelsea is 12th with a +3 goal difference. In their previous Champions League matches, Chelsea and Barcelona drew their matches away from home. Chelsea drew 2-2 with Qarabag, while FC Barcelona drew 3-3 with Club Brugge. In their previous match, Chelsea defeated Burnley 2-0 in the Premier League over the weekend away from home. Pedro Neto and Enzo Fernandez scored for Chelsea to put them second in the Premier League. Barcelona returned to the Camp Nou over the weekend and defeated Athletic Club 4-0. The goal scorers for Barcelona were Robert Lewandowski, Fermin Lopez,…...

1+ week, 1+ day ago (328+ words) Club football has returned in Spain, and FC Barcelona will be playing against Athletic Bilbao at home. After two years, FC Barcelona will play back home at the Spotify Camp Nou. The stadium is expected to hold over 40k fans since it is yet to be completely renovated. Barcelona last played at the Camp Nou on May 28, 2023, in La Liga, when they defeated Mallorca 3-0. FC Barcelona played their home games at the Montjuic Stadium while the Camp Nou was being renovated. This will be the first home game for Barcelona at the Camp Nou this season, and they are expected to play at the Camp Nou for the rest of their home games. The FC Barcelona team already trained at the stadium with fans in attendance before their match against Celta Vigo, which was before the November international break. Barcelona defeated…...

1+ week, 3+ day ago (386+ words) Barcelona host Athletic Club on Saturday afternoon at the Spotify Camp Nou, aiming for a third consecutive LaLiga victory. The defending champions won 4-2 at Celta Vigo in their last league outing, reducing the gap on league leaders Real Madrid, who drew at Rayo Vallecano, to three points. Athletic also beat newly promoted Real Oviedo 1-0 last time out, ending their two-match winless streak. This is a historic fixture for Barcelona, as it marks their first game at the newly revamped Camp Nou. Manager Hansi Flick will hope that emotions do not affect his players, as a victory will help them equal Madrid's points tally. Barcelona are the league's highest goalscorers and have yet to drop a point at home this term " a run they will hope to continue on their new patch. They are still struggling defensively, with the opposition taking…...

1+ week, 8+ hour ago (379+ words) Chelsea host Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday evening. The Blues were held to a 2-2 draw by Azerbaijan side Qarabag in their last outing, while Barcelona also played an enthralling 3-3 draw at Club Brugge. Chelsea defeated Burnley 2-0 in the Premier League on Saturday and will aim to build on that momentum to put their Champions League aspirations back on track. The Blues currently risk missing out on one of the automatic qualification places for the knock-out stages, sitting 12th in the standings with seven points. Wesley Fofana and Moises Caicedo missed the trip to Burnley, but both are expected to return to the starting line-up for this game. Reece James should also start after playing just 45 minutes at Turf Moor. Manager Enzo Maresca will hope the trio's return can provide a boost as they target a…...

5+ day, 3+ hour ago (301+ words) Barcelona star Lamine Yamal is gearing up for their Champions League clash with Chelsea, as he seeks to become the headline story once again. The 18-year-old showed of his skills in fine fashion ahead of the game. The teenage superstar has faced his first real difficulties as a professional this season, with media scrutiny and injury issues descending upon him. After having dominated the majority of the big games last season, Lamine Yamal struggled against both Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid in El Clasico this year, as he battles his sports hernia. In the lead up to Barcelona's tie with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, he seems to be moving more freely though. At any rate, his aim is in fine working fashion, as he demonstrated in training before the match. During the offseason, Lamine Yamal affirmed that the one trophy…...

2+ week, 2+ day ago (330+ words) Spain will travel to Tbilisi on Saturday knowing that a victory would almost certainly secure their spot in the finals of the 2026 World Cup with a game to spare in Group E. La Roja are currently top of the section on 12 points, three points ahead of second-placed Turkey, while Georgia are third and need two wins from their final two matches to stand a chance of claiming a playoff spot. Georgia face setbacks with the loss of Otar Kakabadze and Georges Mikautadze due to injury. The absence of Mikautadze is significant as the Villarreal forward has netted 21 goals in 41 appearances for his country. He is sidelined with knee issues suffered during training sessions. Additional Spanish absences include Rodri, Pedri, and Nico Williams, all sidelined due to injuries. Pedri is facing a recovery period of up to six weeks after sustaining a…...

5+ day, 9+ hour ago (160+ words) Three members of the first-team ranks at both Barcelona and Real Madrid have been afforded places in Sofascore's Team of the Week in La Liga. This comes owing to their respective efforts against Athletic Club, and Elche. In the case of the former, Barcelona's 4-0 drubbing of Athletic has culminated in the inclusions of all of Pau Cubars, Fermn L'pez, and Ferran Torres, the latter of whom was on target to the tune of a brace. Turning focus towards Real Madrid, and despite their disappointing evening's work at Elche, a trio of Blancos stars also make the cut based on individual statistics. The players in question come in the form of Dean Huijsen, Jude Bellingham (responsible for a goal and an assist) and Kylian Mbapp. Rounding out Sofascore's latest Team of the Week in Spain's top-flight, meanwhile, are the following: David…...

3+ week, 30+ min ago (176+ words) Barcelona star Marcus Rashford has taken his place atop the La Liga assist chart, following the Blaugrana's latest outing. This comes after the Englishman laid on another pair of goals en route to a hard-fought victory over Celta Vigo. Rashford for his part featured from the off at Bala'dos, from his customary berth on the left flank. The on-loan Manchester United man's first telling contribution came late in the first-half, when his devilish whipped delivery from out wide was directed home by Robert Lewandowski. And Lewandowski was the man to benefit from Rashford's 2nd assist of the evening, too. On this occasion, with Barcelona leading by three goals to two, the 28-year-old's corner from the left was nodded into the far corner by the Polish frontman. Rashford, all told, has now racked up seven assists across the La Liga campaign to…...

1+ week, 5+ day ago (289+ words) Spain ensured they would be at the 2026 World Cup, at least in terms of numerical certainty, with something of an anticlimactic draw against Turkiye at La Cartuja. Finishing in a draw, it did maintain La Roja's unbeaten run. They contributed to a controlling performance in the first half in which Mikel Oyarzabal could not convert a one-on-one, and Altay Bayindir was forced into several good saves. This was not much of a worry for de la Fuente, until just before the break, when a corner was flicked on and Deniz Gul headed in for the equaliser. Turkiye, spurred on by their goal, began to come into the game more after the half. In the 54th minute, Turkiye turned it around, with a ball to the edge of the box smacked back into the far corner by Salih Ozcan. Now rocking somewhat,…...