Barcelona vs Leganes 21/01/19

21 January 2019

After overcoming a 1-goal deficit against Levante in Copa del Rey last-16 tie, Barcelona will host Leganes to Camp Nou, searching for their fourth consecutive home win in all competitions.

The Catalan giants have advanced to the Copa del Rey quarter-finals thanks to a routine 3-0 win over the Granotas, which was their third successive home outing in which they’ve managed to keep a clean sheet. What’s more, Ernesto Valverde’s men have scored over 1.5 goals in nine of their ten La Liga home clashes, averaging 3.30 scored goals per match. However, Barcelona’s defensive frailties have seen them keeping a clean sheet in just four home LL meetings, allowing over 1.5 goals per game four times in the process. Nonetheless, the reigning La Liga champions now look to post their third consecutive home win over Leganes and take their revenge on a shock 2-1 road defeat in the first half of the season.

Meanwhile, the visitors have gone from five successive games without a win (D3, L2) to two consecutive triumphs in all competitions. Four of Leganes’ last five victories have ended with the identical 1-0 scoreline, including both of their previous successes against Huesca and Real Madrid. Established as one of the best defensive teams in the Spanish top tier, Los Pepineros have conceded under 1.5 goals per match in 14 of 19 La Liga meetings this campaign, keeping a clean sheet five times in the process. Just 30% of Leganes’ road encounters have produced over 2.5 goals, with Mauricio Pellegrino’s players scoring over 1.5 goals per match only once so far.

Provisional line-up – Barcelona:

Gk: Marc-Andre ter Stegen Defense: Jordi Alba – Pique – Lenglet – Sergi Roberto Midfield: Sergio Busquets – Arthur Melo – Rakitic Attack: Coutinho – Leo Messi – Luis Suarez

Provisional line-up – Leganes:

Gk: Cuellar Defense: Omeruo – Siovas – Allan Nyom – Jonathan Silva – Bustinza Midfield: Mikel Vesga – Ruben Perez – Rodriguez Arnaiz Attack: En-Nesyri – Guido Carrillo