"Barcelona look for a winning start to the new year as they face local rivals Espanyol at Cornellà in a massive Catalan derby in their first La Liga match of 2026. The Blaugrana can open up a temporary seven-point gap at the top if they can win a ninth consecutive league match, but they'll be facing a red-hot Espanyol side who are really confident that this is their best chance to finally beat their local enemies."
"The big storyline ahead of the derby is the return of Joan Garcia to his former club, and the goalkeeper will certainly be under immense pressure from the home crowd and his former teammates. In front of him we will see the usual back four of Jules Kounde, Pau Cubarsí, Gerard Martín and Alejandro Balde, who will try their best to help limit the amount of work Joan will have to do on the night."
"Barça get a massive reinforcement for this one as Pedri returns after missing the final game of 2025 against Villarreal with a small hamstring issue. The two-week break has allowed him to shake off the issue completely, and The Wizard will start alongside Eric Garcia in the double pivot. Fermín López is expected to start in the number 10 role, needing a big performance to bounce back from a few poor games since coming back from injury."
Barcelona travel to Cornellà to face Espanyol in the first La Liga match of 2026 with a chance to create a temporary seven-point lead. A win would mark a ninth consecutive league victory. Hansi Flick is expected to select his strongest eleven after a two-week break. Joan Garcia returns to his former club and will face intense pressure from the home crowd. The likely defensive line is Jules Kounde, Pau Cubarsí, Gerard Martín and Alejandro Balde. Pedri returns to the double pivot with Eric Garcia, Fermín López is projected at number 10, and Lamine Yamal and Raphinha occupy the wings with Ferran Torres or Robert Lewandowski up front.
Read at Barca Blaugranes
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