Barcelona need to prove their La Liga slump is over as they take on Valencia

Aditya Devavrat 12:22 05/10/2018
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    Fresh off a Champions League win over Tottenham, Barcelona travel to Valencia looking to continue their good form after a recent mini-slump.

    Ernesto Valverde’s men sit atop La Liga, while Valencia are down in a disappointing 14th, making this match-up far from the top-of-the-table clash it was last year.

    Here are some of the talking points ahead of Sunday night’s game.

    BARCA MUST PROVE SLUMP IS OVER

    Barcelona went into their midweek fixture winless in three straight games. Though they ended that run with a superlative display against Tottenham, it’s yet to be seen if the result means the issues that cropped up against Girona, Leganes, and Athletic Bilbao are actually a thing of the past.

    That run of two points from three games came after another Champions League win in which Barcelona scored four goals, so there’s no guarantee that the Blaugrana’s 4-2 win over Spurs will be a turning point. They’ve gotten lucky that eternal rivals Real Madrid are in a slump of their own, so they’ve retained their position at the top of the table, but Valverde’s team can’t rely on that.

    And they’ll face the sort of stubborn side that has been tripping them up of late. Valencia only got their first win of the season last weekend, but they followed it up by earning a point in a dogged display against an admittedly lacklustre Manchester United side midweek.

    Los Che caused Barcelona trouble in last season’s fixtures – though the Catalans emerged with an away draw and home win – and if the side are still out of sync, their opponents will capitalise.

    Barcelona have been struggling in La Liga recently.

    GOAL DROUGHT A CAUSE FOR CONCERN

    On the face of it, 18 goals from seven league games is nothing to worry about. But when you take away the 8-2 win over Huesca, their scoring record starts looking concerning.

    Two of Luis Suarez‘s three goals on the season came in that rout. As the side’s nominal lead striker, his form will soon be questioned, as it was last year when he got off to a similarly slow start.

    He still serves as an excellent foil for Lionel Messi – witness the two dummies which led to two Messi goals against Tottenham on Wednesday – but ultimately, his currency is goals, and it’s likely the ‘Karim Benzema defence’ of pointing to how he contributes in other ways will not be as effective as it was for the Madrid frontman (if it even was for Benzema to begin with).

    Ousmane Dembele, meanwhile, is still an odd fit in this Barcelona side, the maverick who may never be fully integrated into the Barcelona way, and is probably all the more valuable for it. But he was left out of the XI against Tottenham, with the restored Messi-Suarez partnership combining to devastating effect.

    Is that the answer to the relative goal drought, and if so, what does that mean for Dembele?

    Suarez has yet again started a season in middling form.

    Suarez has yet again started a season in middling form.

    VALENCIA LOOKING TO KICK-START SEASON

    As mentioned earlier, Valencia only got their first win of the season in their previous league outing, against Real Sociedad, as the side endured a frustrating start to their campaign, drawing four straight at one point.

    They aren’t quite looking like the side that finished in the top four and briefly threatened to be title contenders last season, though you could sense at Old Trafford in midweek that some of the fighting spirit is returning.

    Again, United were poor, and positive results against them in current form should be taken with a grain of salt, but manager Marcelino had to be encouraged by what he saw of his team. They were resolute in defence, calm in possession, and threatening on the break through Goncalo Guedes – who has had a slow start to the season – in particular.

    It’s a formula that has already undone Barcelona more than once this season, and Valencia, on paper, have more quality than the sides that have stifled or indeed beaten the champions.

    The Mestalla crowd, which can be tough on any visiting team, will be in full voice, and that daunting atmosphere should spur Valencia on. A result here could truly kick-start their season.

    Valencia may be just one big result away from kick-starting their season.

    Valencia may be just one big result away from kick-starting their season.

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