Match Preview for Elche v Barcelona
Barcelona boss Hansi Flick is hoping his team can avoid having to make another comeback when they go to Elche tomorrow.
Barca have made a habit of falling behind in games – conceding the opener in three of their last four fixtures – and while they were able to get themselves out of trouble against Slavia Prague and FC Copenhagen, they ended up losing at Real Sociedad a fortnight ago.
The German would rather have a less stressful evening at the Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero.
He said: “The comebacks are because we concede too many goals. The mentality we have is to always believe in ourselves, but we have to do things better, especially at the beginning of games.
“We must always be there ready from the off and that’s what I want to see from the team. It is always entertaining to watch Barça matches, but we have to work on this and that is what we are going to do.”
A win tomorrow would move Barca four points clear of Real Madrid, who host Rayo Vallecano on Sunday.
But Flick warned it wouldn’t be an easy task against an Elche side that has defined expectations following promotion last season.
“The great moments of the season are coming, important moments and each game is one less game,” he added. “We have to be plugged in and focused. We played against Elche last year at home, they had more possession. Eder [Sarabia] has done a fantastic job. They play very well, they are very brave. They have an attractive game and create a lot of opportunities, I love to see how they play.”
Elche are 11th but have found the going tough recently. They have not won in four La Liga games while they were also beaten by Real Betis in the Copa del Rey.
Team News for Elche v Barcelona
Elche will be without on-loan Barca defender Hector Fort due to a shoulder injury while Alvaro Nunez and Rafa Mir are doubts. Aleix Sebas is suspended.
Long-term injury victims Pedri, Gavi and Andreas Christensen remain sidelined for Barcelona.
Predicted line-ups for Elche v Barcelona
Elche: Pena; Chust, Affengruber, Bigas; Pedrosa, Neto, Diangana, Aguado, Valera; Rodriguez, Silva
Barcelona: J Garcia; Kounde, Cubarsi, Martin, Balde; E Garcia, De Jong; Yamal, Lopez, Raphinha; Lewandowski
How to watch Elche v Barcelona: TV and online streams
Elche versus Barcelona kicks off at 8pm UK time tomorrow night. It is not being shown on UK TV but can be streamed via the Disney+ app.
You can also watch it on the bet365 app and website.
Stats for Elche v Barcelona
- Elche have only lost once at home this season, to Villarreal
- Only Real Madrid have a better away record in La Liga this season than Barcelona
Elche will approach this game in their usual positive manner but Barcelona should have too much quality.
The Catalans are running into decent form and ought to ease to victory here.
