Barcelona kick off the LaLiga season at home as they take on Rayo Vallecano. The anticipation is palpable given the club’s busy summer.
New faces in Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, Franck Kessie, Andreas Christensen and Jules Kounde have Barcelona supporters believing they are back on track in terms of competing for titles and playing good football.
It was a race against time for the Catalan side to register all their new players but, with the exception of Kounde, they should be available for selection as well as Ousmane Dembele and Sergi Roberto who signed renewals.
Xavi Hernández: "We start a new season with great enthusiasm with new signings, it's an important test against Rayo." #fcblive
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) August 12, 2022
On paper, Barcelona are considered favorites against Rayo Vallecano who finished in 12th place last season. However, they won both games against Barcelona last season.
They won the first game in Vallecas which was the final straw in the Ronald Koeman tenure. They also won the second game at the Camp Nou with Xavi Hernandez at the helm. In short, Barcelona would do well in not taking a win for granted or underestimating their opponent.
One of the things Barcelona lacked last season, and was evident in the losses to Rayo Vallecano, is their lack of firepower. With the arrivals of Lewandowski and Raphinha, they appear to have found the answers to their problems.
Known for their midfield during their golden era, the likes of Pedri, Gavi and Busquets are likely to make up the trio with Kessie, Frenkie de Jong and Miralem Pjanic available as backups. It will be interesting to see how Xavi manages the minutes of the substitutes as he can’t play everyone. Kessie was one of the marquee signings and De Jong’s quality speaks for itself despite the rumors surrounding his future.
Xavi likes to play possession, attack-style football and his team should be suited to execute his plan better with the reinforcements the club brought in. The defense remains the big question mark. Christensen is likely to partner Ronald Araujo with Kounde not available and Gerard Pique falling behind the pecking order. At center-back, they look set.
The doubts come with the fullbacks. Sergiño Dest has yet to convince the coaching staff but Sergi Roberto isn’t a much better option. At left-back, Alejandro Balde had a good preseason and could be given the start over the veteran Jordi Alba.
Giving up easy goals or being unable to put games away was another Barça trademark last season. With more control in midfield and plenty of game changers on the bench, Barcelona should be much improved in these areas.
Rayo Vallecano know how Barcelona like to play. They’ll head into the Camp Nou with confidence given the results of last season. They’re going to play deep and try to cut off the passing lanes. The Catalans know that’s how teams play them as well. It will be up to the players to try to break down the defense and try to score first.
One game is not going to define how the rest of the season is going to go. But with the investments Barcelona made, including some risky financing moves, it is imperative for the club to get off on the right foot.