Barcelona vs Eibar 22/02/20

22 February 2020

Barcelona will look to keep in touch with Real Madrid at the top of the La Liga (LL) table when they take on out-of-sorts Eibar at the Camp Nou this weekend.

Since losing 2-0 to Valencia at the end of January, the hosts have put together three consecutive league triumphs, with each seeing Barcelona score over 1.5 first-half goals and both teams on the scoresheet. The Camp Nou has been a fortress this season, with the Catalans winning 11 of 12 LL fixtures here (D1), as they remain one of three sides yet to lose at home this season. Indeed, 65.38% (34) of their total 52 LL points so far came at home, with seven of their 11 league home wins producing a margin of at least three goals (63.64%). The quickest home starters in Spain’s top-flight, Quique Setien’s men have opened the scoring in ten of 12 LL fixtures here (83%), with the majority (59%) of their goals scored coming in the first half (23 of 39).

Meanwhile, the visitors have failed to pick up three points in their past three LL outings (D2, L1), allowing the 18th-placed Celta to reduce the gap to just three points. Furthermore, they’ve returned only eight of their total 24 LL points away from home (33.33%), managing one win in 12 league road trips so far (D5, L6). Particularly ponderous in the attacking third, Los Armeros have scored an average of 0.66 goals per LL away fixture, drawing a blank in three of their last four such matches. Eibar will unlikely improve their disastrous away form against a Barcelona side they’ve lost to in all five of their previous top-flight away H2Hs. Frustratingly for the traveling fans, each of those defeats has seen Eibar concede at least three goals and a losing margin of two goals or more.