Barcelona look to rebound and reclaim their status at the top of LaLiga when they take on Alaves on Sunday. Unlike the match against Osasuna, manager Hansi Flick isn't likely to tinker his side too much.
He rested a number of players last week and the result was a 4-2 loss to Osasuna, ending their perfect start to the season.
Flick: "Rotations? I think it was time to do it in Pamplona, and now we are 100%."
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) October 5, 2024
While the Catalans are coming a midweek victory against Young Boys in the Champions League, Flick was able to give some rest to players like Lamine Yamal, Pedri and Robert Lewandowski. The latter looked annoyed at being subbed out but Barcelona have a busy schedule and will need everyone fit for the upcoming matches.
Another important factor the upcoming international break. Barcelona want to head into the break with a win and a lead over Real Madrid.
"It's very important to go into the break with a victory," Flick said during his pre-match press conference. "This is our goal, for three points tomorrow, this is what we want."
With Real Madrid beating Villarreal 2-0, the Catalans are tied with Madrid for first place in LaLiga, pending the outcome of Barcelona's match against Alaves.
In addition to the win over Young Boys, it also saw the return of Frenkie de Jong after nearly six months out, dealing with an ankle injury. While he is unlikely to start, it does give Flick another option in midfield off the bench.
Despite the fact Alaves currently sit in 11th place, it won't be an easy match for Barcelona. The Catalans did beat them on two occasions last season but they weren't blowouts by any stretch of the imagination.
As they saw against Osasuna, playing away in a hostile environment does have an impact. Though Flick will try to mitigate that impact by fielding as full strenght a team as he deems appropriate. That means we'll more than likely see Raphinha, Lewandowski and Yamal start. Lewandowski was the only one of that front three to start last weekend.
If Barcelona manage to pull out a win, they'll head into the break three points ahead of Madrid and with the knowledge the likes of Dani Olmo, Fermin Lopez and perhaps even Gavi will once again be available for selection.