Opponent watch: Eight Villarreal players ruled out of Barcelona clash, two more doubts | Barca Universal

"Indeed, according to AS, as many as eight Villarreal players have been ruled out of the match against Barcelona, while two more are doubts. The Yellow Submarine, who are third in the league table, have had to deal with mental setbacks of late, having been knocked out of the UEFA Champions League and Copa del Rey. Piling on the problems is the number of absentees heading into the crucial clash against Barcelona, with eight players unavailable."

"Logan Costa and Willy Kambwala remain sidelined due to long-term injuries, while Santiago Mourino and Thomas Partey are also unavailable for the home team. Moreover, Ilias Akhomach and Pape Gueye have been called up for the Africa Cup of Nations, ruling them out of the weekend clash as well. In addition, Juan Foyth and Sergi Cardona are both ruled out after picking up injuries in the Copa del Rey defeat against Racing Santander, taking the total count of unavailable players to eight."

"Beyond that, veteran stars Gerard Moreno and Dani Parejo are both seen as doubts for the match against Barcelona. There is some hope that Parejo can be available, having recently returned from an injury and not risked himself in the cup tie. As for Moreno, the forward has only had two training sessions after recovering from a muscle injury recently, which makes him a doubt for this match."

FC Barcelona travel to El Madrigal to face Villarreal in their final match before the Christmas break after La Liga's attempt to stage the fixture in Miami was canceled, keeping the game at Estadio La Ceramica. Barcelona have a near full-strength squad, missing only Gavi, Dani Olmo, and Ronald Araujo. Villarreal enter the match with eight players ruled out and two further doubts due to long-term injuries, recent cup injuries and Africa Cup of Nations call-ups. The Yellow Submarine have also suffered exits from the Champions League and Copa del Rey, worsening morale. Manager Marcelino must cope with a significantly depleted squad for the crucial clash.

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