Before Barcelona's mid week loss against Paris Saint-Germain, Rayo Vallecano stood little chance of defeating the Spanish giants on Saturday. Thanks to that poor performance from the Blaugrana, it seems even more unlikely that Rayo will be able to get any kind of positive result.
Rayo Vallecano vs. Barcelona live stream: How to watch La Liga online, TV schedule and more
After their first loss of the season against PSG, Barca will attempt take out their frustrations against Rayo Vallecano
Dean Mouhtaropoulos
The simple explanation is that Barca are not happy. They lost for the first time this season. The conceded goals for the first time this season. They didn't play well at all, in fact, their defense was exposed completely by the speed of PSG. This had led to Barca players openly commenting about their disappointment in their play, and Luis Enrique being less than pleased.
The result is Barca are angry and Rayo Vallecano are the unfortunate team that’s next on their schedule. Unless Barca melts down in an epic display of ineptitude, they’re probably going to take all three points on Saturday.
Key Player: Toño (Rayo Vallecano)
With first choice goalkeeper Cristian Alvarez sidelined with a thigh injury, it falls to Toño to stand in front of the Barcelona attack and try to deny them goals. It’s not an enviable position to be in, but there’s little doubt the 34-year-old Spaniard will do his best. It’s going to take a pretty outstanding performance for Rayo to get a result, so if Toño starts standing on his head and making some spectacular saves early, who knows what could happen.
Key Matchup: Ze Castro and Abdoulaye vs. Barca’s attack
Rayo’s first choice defensive pairing will be under considerable pressure on Saturday from Barcelona’s formidable attack. They’ll have plenty of help though as Rayo will likely bunker down and try to clog up the final third as much as possible to limit Barca’s space. Generally that works for awhile, but usually the Blaugrana find a way through. Ze Castro and Abdoulaye will need to be on their games, marshaling the defense and trying to keep everyone organized.
Rayo Vallecano injuries and suspensions
Out: Cristian Alvarez (thigh)
Barcelona injuries and suspensions
Out: Luis Suárez (suspended), Rafinha (muscle injury), Jordi Masip (finger).
Rayo will be missing goalkeeper Cristian Alvarez after he suffered a thigh injury last week, moving backup Toño into the starting position. Barca have no new injury concerns, though Luis Suárez is inching closer to his debut later this month.
Match Date/Time: Saturday, 6 p.m. local, 12 p.m. ET
Venue: Estadio del Rayo Vallecano, Madrid, Spain
TV: beIN Sports, beIN Sports en Español (U.S.), Sky Sports 5/HD (U.K.), beIN Sports (Canada), C+ Liga Multi, GOL T, Canal+ Liga/HD (Spain)
Online: beIN Sports CONNECT (U.S.), Sky Go (U.K.), beIN Sports CONNECT (Canada), Gol Stadium (Spain)
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