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[monks data]
Almeria
La Liga
Nov 8, 2014 at 3pm UK
 
Barcelona logo

1-2

Bifouma (37')
FT(HT: 1-0)
Neymar (73'), Alba (82')

Preview: Almeria vs. Barcelona

Sports Mole previews Barcelona's trip to face lowly Almeria in La Liga this weekend.

Barcelona travel to face Almeria this weekend looking to return to winning ways following back-to-back defeats in La Liga.

The Catalan giants failed to bounce back from their recent El Clasico defeat at the hands of rivals Real Madrid, falling 1-0 at home to Celta Vigo last time out.

That loss was in large down to the match-winning heroics from visiting keeper Sergio Alvarez, who produced a number of saves to thwart Barca's potent attack.

It is not quite a disaster for Luis Enrique's men quite yet, however, with their strong start to the season ensuring that they trail leaders Madrid by just one point despite their loss of form in the league.

They come up against an Almeria side who themselves are struggling to pick up three points at the moment, having lost three games on the bounce to drop within a point of the relegation zone.

The Rojiblancos have kept just one clean sheet in La Liga this season which partly explains their lowly position, while goals at the other end have also been an issue, scoring just eight times this campaign.

To put that into some perspective Barca have found the net on 23 occasions, although summer signing Luis Suarez has yet to get off the mark after finally seeing out his four-month suspension for biting Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup.

He will have another chance to make his Barcelona breakthrough in Andulusia on Saturday, in a likely 4-3-3 formation alongside Lionel Messi and Neymar.

Messi edged closer to Raul's all-time Champions League goalscoring record with a brace against Ajax in midweek, and he will be keen to continue from where he left off against Alemeria.

Defender Jeremy Mathieu and experienced hand Andres Iniesta are both expected to miss the trip to Juegos Mediterraneos, however, while Claudio Bravo will return in goal.

Recent league form

Almeria: LWDLLL

Barcelona: DWWWLL

Possible starting lineups

Almeria: Ruben, Navarro, Trujillo, Dos Santos, Dubarbier, Verza, Corona, Jonathan, Thomas, Mendez, Thievy

Barcelona: Bravo, Alves, Bartra, Mascherano, Alba, Rakitic, Busquets, Xavi, Suarez, Messi, Neymar

Sports Mole says: 0-3


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Written by
Daniel Lewis
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Real Madrid's Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates after scoring during the Spanish league 'Clasico' football match Real Madrid CF vs FC Barcelona at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid on October 25, 2014.
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2Atletico MadridAtletico22146237142348
3Barcelona22143560243645
4Athletic Bilbao22118333201341
5Villarreal22107544331137
6Rayo Vallecano239862724335
7GironaGirona229493130131
8Osasuna227962731-430
9Mallorca2293101928-930
10Real BetisBetis227872528-329
11Real Sociedad2284101819-128
12Sevilla227782430-628
13Celta Vigo2274113135-425
14Getafe225981717024
15Las PalmasLas Palmas2265112736-923
16Leganes225891930-1123
17Espanyol2265112133-1223
18AlavesAlaves2256112534-921
19Valencia2247112237-1519
20Real ValladolidValladolid2343161548-3315


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