Three talking points ahead of Sevilla vs Barcelona | La Liga | OneFootball

Barcelona sealed a place in the semifinal of the Copa del Rey earlier this week with a convincing win over Valencia at Mestalla.

Days later, they return to action in La Liga against Sevilla and visit yet another of Spain’s daunting away clashes at Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.

When Barcelona met Sevilla earlier this season, they put five goals past them at Monjtuic with Robert Lewandowski and Pablo Torre scoring braces after Pedri opened the scoring. The story in Sevilla, however, may not be as straightforward.

Sevilla are not having a good season in La Liga by their standards and currently languish in 13th place with just seven wins in 22 games.

They have currently won just two of their last eight games and most recently were held to a goalless draw by Getafe.

Barça Universal brings you three talking points ahead of Sevilla vs Barcelona.

The chance to pull closer

Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid played a draw. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

Matchday 23 of La Liga was always going to be significant for the league standings with Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid locking horns against each other at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Given the leaderboard ahead of kickoff in Madrid, it was clear that Barcelona stood to gain irrespective of the result as they would be assured that at least one of the two teams would drop points.

As it turned out, however, both Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid dropped points on the night and Barcelona could not have hoped for a better scenario. Their game against Sevilla tonight is thus their ticket back into contention.

A win at Ramon Sanchez Pijzuan tonight will take Barcelona to 48 points after 23 games and within touching distance of the leaders. Should they take three points, they will be just one point behind Los Rojiblancos and two behind Real Madrid.

Having thrown away their precious lead at the top after a wild run of poor results, Barcelona have a golden chance to get their foot back into the race and it is crucial they capitalize on the draw in the Madrid derby.

Mainstays return

Gavi is available to face Valencia. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

Barcelona’s trip to Valencia went smoother than expected given the player Hansi Flick was without and the rotations he planned for the Copa del Rey clash. The attacking midfield, in particular, was seen as a riddle for him to solve.

The German tactician did not have either Dani Olmo or Gavi available against Valencia and opted to use Fermin Lopez – a decision that reaped its rewards.

Later tonight, however, he will have both Olmo and Gavi back fit and it remains to be seen who he prefers as the mediapunta in his system.

Having recovered from a niggle, it is likely that Olmo will start on the bench and Gavi will be handed the start for he was not ruled out through any physical injury but a concussion. Both options, needless to say, bring their perks.

In other developments, Inigo Martinez is back to his 100% and can start alongside Pau Cubarsi against Sevilla, especially after he dished out another strong display against Valencia after the half-time break.

With the best defensive pairing back in action, it remains to be seen if Barcelona return to being the offside trap experts as they were in the first half of the season.

Attacking options

Ferran Torres is in top form. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

Ferran Torres’ hat-trick against Valencia came as a reminder to Flick and the fans as to how useful the Spaniard can be in Barcelona’s plans, especially with his finishing looking sharper than ever.

The Euro 2024 winner, after all, provides a serious threat in the final third with his movements and his combination play with Raphinha single-handedly tore his former club apart at Mestalla midweek.

Torres is now seriously knocking on the doors for a starting spot for he has stepped up every time he has played in place of Robert Lewandowski. Flick, on that front, has a crucial decision to take.

After resting the Polish talisman in the last game, it is natural for the coach to turn to the Pichichi leader against Sevilla. However, there is now pressure on Lewandowski to return to his lethal best in front of goal – something he has lacked in recent months.

Torres may not reap immediate rewards for his hat trick in the form of a start tomorrow, but all eyes will be on Lewy to see how he can respond to being placed under the spotlight.