Barcelona failed to pass its first difficult test of 2015, drawing with Sevilla last Sunday. Now, an even tougher opponent stands between the club and its chase for La Liga glory. The clash between Barcelona and Valencia scheduled for 10 a.m. ET can be live streamed here free. Additional TV coverage can be found on beIN Sports.
What's At Stake
Two points, that's all that separates Barcelona and Real Madrid in the Spanish table. Any slip from the Catalan giants will see their fiercest rival reclaim the No. 1 spot.
The biggest misconception, however, is that La Liga is just Barcelona and Real Madrid. More is at stake on Saturday.
Only one point separates Valencia and Atletico Madrid for third in the table, one point between automatically qualifying for the Champions League and having to face an opponent in the dreaded playoff.
The In-Form Player
We can neither confirm, nor deny that David Luiz has fully recovered from the abuse delivered by Luis Suarez on Wednesday. The 28-year-old nutmegged his Brazilian counterpart not once, but twice en route to goal in a 3-1 victory over PSG. In 22 league appearances, Suarez has 10 goals and nine assists.
Projected Lineups
Valencia (4-3-3): Alves; Gaya, Otamendi, Mustafi, Barragan; Gomes, Fuego, Parejo; Rodrigo, Alcacer, Feghouli
Barcelona (4-3-3): Bravo; Alves, Pique, Mathieu, Alba; Rakitic, Busquets, Xavi; Neymar, Suarez, Messi
Updated League Table
| Rnk | Team | MP | W | D | L | GF | GA | +/- | Pts | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FC Barcelona | 31 | 24 | 3 | 4 | 87 | 19 | 68 | 75 | |||
| 2 | Real Madrid CF | 31 | 24 | 1 | 6 | 92 | 27 | 65 | 73 | |||
| 3 | Atlético Madrid | 31 | 20 | 6 | 5 | 59 | 25 | 34 | 66 | |||
| 4 | Valencia CF | 31 | 19 | 8 | 4 | 56 | 23 | 33 | 65 | |||
| 5 | Sevilla FC | 31 | 19 | 5 | 7 | 57 | 36 | 21 | 62 | |||
| 6 | Villarreal CF | 31 | 14 | 9 | 8 | 44 | 30 | 14 | 51 | |||
| 7 | Málaga CF | 31 | 13 | 7 | 11 | 34 | 35 | -1 | 46 | |||
| 8 | RCD Espanyol | 32 | 11 | 9 | 12 | 39 | 40 | -1 | 42 | |||
| 9 | Athletic Club | 31 | 11 | 7 | 13 | 28 | 37 | -9 | 40 | |||
| 10 | Celta de Vigo | 31 | 10 | 9 | 12 | 36 | 34 | 2 | 39 | |||
| 11 | Real Sociedad | 31 | 9 | 11 | 11 | 36 | 42 | -6 | 38 | |||
| 12 | Rayo Vallecano | 31 | 12 | 2 | 17 | 36 | 59 | -23 | 38 | |||
| 13 | Getafe CF | 31 | 10 | 6 | 15 | 28 | 41 | -13 | 36 | |||
| 14 | Eibar | 31 | 8 | 7 | 16 | 28 | 43 | -15 | 31 | |||
| 15 | Elche CF | 31 | 8 | 7 | 16 | 26 | 54 | -28 | 31 | |||
| 16 | Levante UD | 32 | 7 | 8 | 17 | 30 | 60 | -30 | 29 | |||
| 17 | UD Almería | 31 | 7 | 7 | 17 | 27 | 50 | -23 | 28 | |||
| 18 | Deportivo La Coruña | 31 | 6 | 10 | 15 | 27 | 49 | -22 | 28 | |||
| 19 | Granada CF | 31 | 4 | 12 | 15 | 20 | 56 | -36 | 24 | |||
| 20 | Córdoba CF | 31 | 3 | 10 | 18 | 21 | 51 | -30 | 19 |
Note: Credit all statistics to officially licensed data from Opta Sports (lineups and statistics via WhoScored).
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