Barcelona will look to take another step towards securing second place in La Liga when they face Celta Vigo at Camp Nou on Tuesday.
A dramatic finish last time out saw Barça snatch a win over Real Betis on Saturday as Jordi Alba netted an injury-time winner following Ansu Fati’s earlier strike.
Here’s the side manager Xavi may pick to take on Celta.
GK: Marc-Andre ter Stegen – Missed the weekend’s victory at Real Betis due to illness but will hope to have recovered to retake his starting position from Neto.
RB: Dani Alves – Set up the winner for old buddy Alba to score the winner against Betis and should feature again here.
CB: Ronald Araujo – With Gerard Pique sidelined, Araujo is the senior centre back and will need to coach the more erratic Garcia through the game.
CB: Eric Garcia – Has looked sketchy since rejoining Barça from Manchester City in the summer but has still started 22 La Liga games this term.
LB: Jordi Alba – A goal and an assist at Betis shows Alba’s attacking threat is not diminishing even at 33 years of age.
CM: Gavi – Has racked up three bookings in his last four games, showing Barça’s midfield hardly lacks bite.
CM: Frenkie de Jong – With Sergio Busquets suspended, the onus falls on De Jong to dictate the tempo of Barça’s play. His performance levels have soared since Xavi’s appointment.
CM: Riqui Puig – Busquets’ aforementioned absence should open the door for Puig to start. Has been left behind by Barça’s other midfield prodigies but is still only 22 himself.
RW: Ousmane Dembele – Has rediscovered his creative form since speculation over his future in January. Has 11 league assists this season, the joint-best record alongside Karim Benzema.
ST: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – May be entrusted to lead the line, having appeared as a substitute last time out.
LW: Ferran Torres – Ansu Fati has made two substitute appearances since returning from injury – scoring most recently at Betis – but a start is still a little way off, giving Torres the left wing berth on Tuesday.
