Barcelona vs Galatasaray. Prediction and Preview. Probable Lineups, Team News, Stats and more
Barcelona will host Galatasaray at Cam Nou in the UEFA Europa League round of 16, first leg. The match will take place on March 10, beginning at 01:30 IST.
Now, after so many consecutive years in the Champions League, Barcelona are playing in the Europa League in the spring. And, of course, having such a grandee in the tournament automatically makes it more attractive. The next opponent, at the 1/8 final level, will be Galatasaray. And the first game against them will take place at the legendary Camp Nou. Is there any intrigue in this pairing? We have prepared a prediction and preview for this football match specially for you.
Barcelona News & Current Form:
Barcelona had a poor start to the season this year, changing coaches and losing Lionel Messi, which resulted in erratic results and relegation from the Champions League. Nevertheless, the Catalans made it through to the Europa League play-offs, where they showed their class in the first leg and knocked Napoli out of the competition.
The team had a disappointing opening in the Spanish Cup and the Super Cup, but, for all that, in La Liga, the Blaugrana are improving with every round.
Barca are again becoming a formidable attacking machine, with the players having produced a total of 48 goals (ranking in the top four GF in La Liga). No one knows where Barcelona got their funds for reinforcements, but there have been some very important transfers this winter – which are very helpful to the current situation. Particular mention should be made of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who has already scored 5 goals in his last 7 games, a player the Spanish club got for almost nothing.
Considering that during the recession, the Blaugrana had barely scored at least 1 goal – Xavi has managed to make incredible progress in the last few months.
Barça had won their previous four matches, in which they had scored 14 goals. Four goals each went to Valencia (4-1), Napoli (4-2) and Athletic (4-0). In the last round, the Catalans defeated Elche (2-1).
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After 26 games this season, Xavi’s side have 13 wins and nine draws, bringing them 48 points and third place in the table.
Injured: Ansu Fati, Sergi Roberto, Samuel Umtiti, Alejandro Balde. Suspended: Gavi.
Galatasaray News & Current Form:
In the Europa League group stage, Galatasaray recorded three wins and three draws in six rounds to earn 12 points and top spot in the table. At that phase, the Yellows and Reds managed to beat Lazio and Marseille.
In the Turkish league, the situation of today’s visitors is not good – after 28 rounds of the current campaign, the Lions have won just nine games and eight peaceful victories, which brought them 35 points and 12th place in the table.
The gap to the relegation zone is eight points, which leaves a good chance of keeping their place in the Süper Lig. The situation is embarrassing, especially сonsidering the team finished 2nd last season and won the championship in the 2018-2019 season.
But Galatasaray’s recent matches cannot be described as boring. However, that is because the Turkish club’s defensive performance has been poor as a rule, although the attacking line is looking good, with 37 goals scored. The Istanbul club, though, concedes a whopping 41 goals (compared to Barça’s 29).
The last time Galatasaray completed a game without conceding a goal was at the end of December, when they beat Antalyaspor at home. Since then, Galatasaray have played 11 matches and conceded 27 goals in them. Unsurprisingly, the Istanbul side have only two wins in that time.
Injured: Arda Turan.
Barcelona season form guide (all competitions): D-D-W-W-W-W
Galatasaray season form guide (all competitions): L-D-D-W-W-L
Barcelona vs Galatasaray Head-To-Head Record:
| Barcelona | Draw | Galatasaray |
| 6 | 1 | 1 |
There have been a total of eight meetings between the clubs, all, of course, in the Champions League. Galatasaray won and drew once each, with Barcelona winning all of the other 6 fixtures. This includes all three of the most recent matches.
Barcelona vs Galatasaray Predicted XI:
Barcelona Predicted XI (4-3-3): Marc-Andre Ter Stegen; Serginio Dest, Ronald Araujo, Gerard Pique, Jordi Alba; Pedri, Sergio Busquets, Frenkie De Jong; Adama Traore, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Ferran Torres
Galatasaray Predicted XI (4-5-1): Inaki Pena; Omar Elabdellaoui, Marcao, Victor Nelsson, Patrick Van Aanholt; Erick Pulgar; Berkan Kutlu; Olimpiu Morutan, Ryan Babel, Kerem Akturkoglu; Mostafa Mohamed
What have been said before the match:
“We always want to win. We are on good form. There is still room for improvement. I know I can still get better. We want to win the Europa League, we’re excited about the idea. Galatasaray are a good side. But we are winning games right now and we are creating a lot of goalscoring opportunities.”
said Frenkie de Jong at a media conference prior to the game with Galatasaray on Thursday.
“I can do a lot more. I’m working very hard and talking to the coaches. Xavi Hernández shows me videos of games to show me how can do more in midfield. We have a lot of top quality midfielders at this club and we are all potential starters and that’s good for the team. Right now we are brimming with confidence. And it is buoyed by that confidence that they are now aiming to produce another fine result in the Europa League.”
he concludes.
Doménec Torrent, Galatasaray’s head coach, is not afraid of Barcelona and believes his men can win:
“We are on the path of continuous progress. Barcelona are in great shape. We need to be perfect. We must give our best. We should not take the position. We will have options. We know how to act when we have the ball. We know that Barcelona has developed very well. He knows how to get the ball with pressure somehow. We know not only defense but also attack. We know very well what to do both in defense and attack. Barcelona will always try to attack us, but we will take the precaution. We are aware that we have to spend the last minutes very well.”
he said.
“Xavi is someone who has done great things. He’s doing great things right now. They have very clear ideas. He knows very well what to do. The fact that Barcelona will continue with Xavi is very good news for them. The new transfers are also very good. They have improved Barcelona a lot. Sometimes we are unfair in criticism. They are on a very good track.”
he priased Xavi.
Statistical preview of the match Barcelona vs Galatasaray:
- Barça have scored 12 goals in their previous four games at Camp Nou.
- It is worth noting that Barcelona also concede regularly. In the previous ten games, for example, only two of the goals were scored in this period.
- Galatasaray have conceded 11 goals in their previous five away matches.
- Including qualification, the blood-and-golds have a 10-match unbeaten streak in European competitions.
Barcelona vs Galatasaray Prediction:
Teams from different dimensions and in different moral and physical conditions will appear on the pitch today. Galatasaray have failed in their Super League season and have not yet fully secured a safe place today. Barcelona are gaining momentum with every matchday, and their recent purchases of players have not been in vain; the Catalans are delighting not only with their results, but also with the quality of their football. We expect a confident success for the home side thanks to the class and support from the stands.
Barcelona must not just win, but decide all the questions about this pairing already at the Camp Nou, so that they can travel to the next leg in a relaxed state and be able to focus on La Liga more.
Parimatch News staff prediction: