Barcelona vs Almeria...CONTINUE READING THE FULL ARTICLE>>>
Following Gerard Pique’s unexpected decision to retire, Barcelona welcomes recently promoted Almeria to Camp Nou in an attempt to maintain the pressure on Real Madrid at the top.
The Catalan giants took out their frustrations on Viktoria Plzen in midweek, while the visitors won their fourth game of the season last weekend, 3-1 against Celta Vigo.
Gerard Pique, one of Barcelona’s finest defenders, announced his retirement on Thursday, naming the weekend’s LaLiga match as his final.
The center-back joined the club in 2008 and will depart with 616 appearances, fifth-most in club history.
Xavi, Pique’s current manager, is one of just four to have played more games for Blaugrana. He used Wednesday’s Champions League dead-rubber to rotate his team, giving four teenagers minutes in a 4-2 victory against Viktoria Plzen.
Barca sits one point behind Real Madrid in LaLiga following Real’s loss to Girona last weekend.
Robert Lewandowski scored a 93rd-minute winner at Mestalla last time out as Xavi’s side made it three straight victories in the Spanish top division, with 29 goals scored and only four surrendered thus far.
A home match against newly-promoted opponents should allow them to keep up their championship drive after resting key players in midweek.
Getafe vs Cadiz
On Saturday, Getafe will host Cadiz at the Coliseum Alfonso Perez in what might end up being a pivotal matchup at the bottom of the 2022–23 LaLiga rankings.
The visitors will come in the capital fresh off an extraordinary 3-2 victory over Atletico Madrid, while the hosts are undefeated in their previous four games and haven’t lost since a close loss to Real Madrid at the beginning of October.
Getafe pulled away from the early relegation scrap with three victories and three draws in their past eight LaLiga games.
Los Azulones have prioritised road solidity, averaging 0.33 anticipated goals per game over their previous three LaLiga outings.
Enes Unal’s 25-yard free-kick was Madrid’s sole shot on target against Celta Vigo two weeks ago, despite having only 28% of the ball.
Laliga Table;
