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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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3Barcelona19122551222938
4Athletic Bilbao19106329171236
5Villarreal188643430430
6Mallorca199371921-230
7Real Sociedad187471613325
8GironaGirona187472625125
9Real BetisBetis186752122-125
10Osasuna186752327-425
11Celta Vigo187382728-124
12Rayo Vallecano185762021-122
13Las PalmasLas Palmas186482327-422
14Sevilla186482027-722
15Leganes184681728-1118
16AlavesAlaves184592130-917
17Getafe183781115-416
18Espanyol1843111630-1415
19Valencia172691626-1012
20Real ValladolidValladolid1833121237-2512


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