Villarreal vs. Barcelona – La Liga Preview, Predictions, Team News

Barcelona sits atop the La Liga standings ahead of its clash with Villarreal.

Lamine will look to continue his goalscoring form against Villarreal. / IMAGO/Jose Breton

Barcelona will be eager to bounce back from its Champions League defeat mid-week as the Catalans take on Villarreal in La Liga.

Hansi Flick got Barcelona off to a perfect start in La Liga. The 27-time Spanish champions collected all 15 points from their opening five fixtures and sit alone atop the La Liga standings. Besides losing several players to injuries, everything was going right for the Catalans until they suffered a 1–2 defeat against Monaco on Thursday after Eric García was sent off in the 10th minute.

Now Barcelona must turn its focus back to domestic action as they travel to Villarreal. The Yellow Submarine is undefeated so far this season and in fine goalscoring form; Marcelino's men have found the back of the net 11 times in five games and will look to take advantage of a poorly rested Barcelona come Sunday.

Here's SI Soccer's guide to Villarreal vs. Barcelona.

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What Time Does Villarreal vs. Barcelona Kick-off?

• Location: Villarreal, Spain
• Stadium: Estadio de la Ceràmica
• Date: Sunday, Sept. 22
• Kick-off Time: 12:30 p.m. EST

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Villarreal vs. Barcelona H2H Record (Last Five Games)

• Villarreal: 2 wins
• Barcelona: 3 wins
• Draws: 0

Last meeting: Barcelona 3–5 Villarreal (Jan. 27, 2024) – La Liga

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Current Form (All Competitions)

Villarreal	Barcelona
Mallorca 1–2 Villarreal – Sept. 14, 2024	Monaco 2–1 Barcelona – Sept. 19, 2024
Valencia 1–1 – Villarreal – Aug. 31, 2024	Girona 1–4 Barcelona – Sept. 15, 2024
Villarreal 4–3 Celta Vigo – Aug. 28, 2024	Barcelona 7–0 Real Valladolid – Aug. 31, 2024
Sevilla 1–2 Villarreal – Aug. 23, 2024	Rayo Vallecano 1–2 Barcelona – Aug. 27, 2024
Villarreal 2–2 Atletico Madrid – Aug. 19, 2024	Barcelona 2–1 Athletic Club – Aug. 24, 2024

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How to Watch Villarreal vs. Barcelona on TV and Live Stream

Country	TV Channel/Live Stream
United States	ESPN+

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Villarreal Team News

Willy Kambwala, Gerard Moreno, Juan Foyth and Alfonso Pedraza all remain sidelined with injuries for Villarreal. Marcelino will likely roll out a largely unchanged XI against Barcelona after his side rallied from behind to collect all three points against Mallorca.

Expect Ayoze Pérez to once again get the nod up top; the Spaniard already has three goals in five La Liga matches for Villarreal.

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Villarreal Predicted Lineup vs. Barcelona

Villarreal Predicted Lineup vs. Barcelona (4–4–2): Conde; Kiko, Albiol, Costa, S. Cardona; Pino, Comesaña, Parejo, Baena; Pérez, Barry

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Barcelona Team News

Barcelona are in the middle of an injury crisis. Dani Olmo, Frenkie de Jong, Ronald Araújo, Gavi, Marc Bernal and Fermín López are all still unfit to play. Marc Casadó picked up a knock at the end of Barcelona's UCL fixture against Monaco mid-week, but the midfielder will still likely get the nod on Sunday.

Ferran Torres is also unavailable after getting sent off against Girona last weekend.

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Barcelona Predicted Lineup vs. Villarreal

Barcelona Predicted Lineup vs. Villarreal (4–2–3–1): Ter Stegen; Koundé, Cubarsí, I. Martínez, Balde; Casadó, E. García; Yamal, Pedri, Raphinha; Lewandowski

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Villarreal vs. Barcelona Score Prediction

Playing three days after battling with ten men for over 80 minutes will be difficult for Barcelona, especially since Flick has so few players he can realistically rotate into the starting XI. Villarreal are more than capable of putting one past Marc-André ter Stegen, but the visitors should have enough talent on the pitch to walk away with all three points.

Prediction: Villarreal 1–2 Barcelona