Valencia vs Barcelona 25/01/20

25 January 2020

Valencia and Barcelona go head-to-head in a massive La Liga (LL) showdown at the Estadio de Mestalla this weekend.

A narrow 1-0 win over lower-league outfit Logrones in their midweek’s Copa del Rey fixture saw Valencia end a two-game losing streak in all competitions, but to beat a Barcelona side they’ve lost to in three of their previous six LL H2Hs (D3) will require something more. Luckily for Los Ches, this game will take place at their stadium, where they have not lost a single league match so far this season (W5, D5). Also, the Oranges have won three of their previous four LL home outings (D1), with three of those games featuring under 2.5 goals. Importantly, Albert Celades’ men have opened the scoring in eight of ten LL home fixtures, with 56% of their total home goals scored coming in the second half.

Meanwhile, Barcelona pulled off a second-half comeback to dump Ibiza out of Copa del Rey during the midweek, which was their second consecutive one-goal-margin success under new boss Quique Setien. But, the Catalans have failed to pick up three points in both of their previous LL road trips (D2), with both of those draws ending with the exact 2-2 score and seeing Barca ship the first goal inside the opening 25 minutes of play. But, the reigning LL holders relish facing Valencia away from home, with their last top-flight defeat at the Mestalla dating back to February 2007. Indeed, they’ve won six of 13 LL trips to Valencia ever since (D7), although scoring over 1.5 goals only once in their previous five such meetings.