Barcelona vs Granada
Liga BBVA 2016/17
29th October 2016, 19:45 pm BST
Camp Nou, Barcelona
Barcelona Team News & Preview
Barcelona host Granada in the La Liga this weekend and the Spanish champions will be looking to close the gap with arch-rivals Real Madrid at the top of the table.
Los Blancos are two points ahead of the defending champions and Luis Enrique will be aiming for a fourth consecutive win this week. The Catalan giants are on a three-match winning run at the moment and have beaten the likes of Deportivo, Manchester City and Valencia in recent weeks.
The home side will be without several key players for the welcome of Granada and Enrique will need to rely on the trio of Messi, Suarez and Neymar to guide his side to victory.
Gerard Pique and Jeremy Mathieu are both injured. Spanish international Jordi Alba is also sidelined and the absence of star midfielder Andres Iniesta will also be a major blow for the home side.
Predicted Barcelona Starting Lineup (4-3-3): Ter Stegen; Roberto, Umtiti, Mascherano, Digne; Rakitic, Gomes, Busquets; Messi, Suarez, Neymar
Granada Team News & Preview
Granada have been the worst team in La Liga so far this season. The away side will be dreading their visit to Camp Nou this weekend. They have failed to win a single game in the league so far and only managed to end their losing run with a 0-0 draw against Gijon last week.
Furthermore, they have a terrible head to head record against the Spanish champions and will be severely devoid of confidence here.
Dimitri Foulquier and Gaston Silva are the only injury worries for the away side here.
Predicted Granada Starting Lineup (5-4-1): Ochoa; Tito, Saunier, Vezo, Lomban, Silva; Cuenca, Angban, Agbo, Pereira; Ponce
Barcelona vs Granada Key Stats
Barcelona have scored at least 4 goals in their last 3 home matches against Granada in all competitions.
Barcelona have won 9 of their last 10 matches against Granada in all competitions.
Barcelona have scored at least 3 goals in their last 4 matches in La Liga.
Barcelona have kept a clean sheet in their last 4 home matches against Granada in all competitions.
Barcelona have been winning at both half time and full time in their last 4 matches against Granada in all competitions.
Granada have failed to win their last 10 matches in La Liga.
Granada have conceded at least 2 goals in 6 of their last 7 away matches in La Liga.
Barcelona vs Granada Betting Tips
Barcelona will be determined for a win and it should be easy to secure considering Granada’s terrible form this season. Get with Ladbrokes.
Barcelona have won both halves against Granada in their last 4 meetings. Get.
Barcelona have been scoring freely in their last few matches and Granada have conceded quite a few. seem likely.
Barcelona have kept a clean sheet in each of their last 4 meetings with Granada. Get them to .
Reason For Barcelona vs Granada Betting Tips
This game on paper looks like a total mismatch and there is every chance it will turn out that way. Granada are propping up the table and conceding goals all over the place, which isn’t exactly a great place to be in ahead of a trip to Camp Nou.
Barcelona have a few problems of their own following another shaky defensive showing at Valencia last weekend but they should exert total control over this football match so it’s hard to see Granada getting into enough good positions to cause them many problems. Luis Enrique will have one eye on a trip to Manchester City on Tuesday which might be the only saving grace for Granada here so one or two players could be rested. However the Barca boss very rarely rotates his front three when Messi, Suarez and Neymar are all fit and will most likely send out a strong team here to get the game won as quickly as possibly before perhaps withdrawing a few players in the 2nd Half.
The Catalans have scored 3.22 goals per game on average in La Liga this term and Leo Messi has been missing for a few of those games. He’s netted 6 times in Barca’s last 3 matches though including the opening goal in their last two and could tear into Granada here so backing Messi to score two or more at 11/10 looks to offer good value.
Granada defensively are a mess. They conceded 7 times at the Vicente Calderon a fortnight ago and Atleti very rarely win games by that sort of margin. The Andalusian side have conceded 4.25 goals per game on the road this term and have the worst defensive record in the division overall.
Therefore this should be a very comfortable outing for the hosts and backing Barcelona to score over 4.5 goals at 5/4 looks to offer really good value.
