Real Sociedad will meet Barcelona for the fourth time this season as the Blaugrana visit the Aneota Stadium in the Basque Country for the second time this month.
Real Sociedad vs. Barcelona: Preview and TV Schedule
Barcelona haven’t won at the Anoeta Stadium since 2007 and they can ill afford to drop more points in the title race.
Juan Manuel Serrano Arce
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The last trip was for the second leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal and while La Real pulled off a 2-2 draw, it wasn’t enough to get the win on aggregate. It did however keep alive a winless streak for Barca at the Anoeta that stretches back to 2007.
La Real are in sixth, four points back of Athletic Bilbao in fourth place. Despite a tough start to the season, Jagoba Arrasate has turned things around and has his team right in the European spot race. After crashing out of the Champions League with a last place finish in their group, La Real have only their league schedule to concentrate on.
Barca are fresh of a Champions League triumph against Manchester City and will get their first entire week off after this match since December. They’ve managed to stay relatively healthy during that stretch and with the exception of Jordi Alba’s hamstring, Gerardo Martino’s roster is in good shape. Neymar is likely in line for his first start since returning from injury last week.
Real Sociedad injuries and suspensions
Out: None
Barcelona injuries and suspensions
In Doubt: Jordi Alba (hamstring).
Jordi Alba injured his hamstring in Barca’s win over Manchester City and will more big matches on the horizon, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Martino rest his fullback in favor of Adriano. La Real have no new injury concerns.
Projected lineups
Real Sociedad: Caludio Bravo, Zaldùa, Ion Ansotegi, Iñigo Martínez, José Ángel, Markel Bergara, Carlos Vela, Rubén Pardo, Xabi Prieto, Antoine Griezmann, Haris Seferović
Barcelona: Victor Valdés, Dani Alves, Gerard Piqué, Javier Mascherano, Adriano, Sergio Busquets, Andrés Iniesta, Cesc Fàbregas, Alexis Sánchez, Lionel Messi, Neymar
Match Date/Time: 8 p.m. local, 2 p.m. ET
Venue: Anoeta Stadium, San Sebastián, Spain
TV: beIN Sports USA, beIN Sports en Español (U.S.), Sky Sports 3 (U.K.), Canal+ Liga (Spain)
Online: beIN Sports Play (U.S.), beIN Sports Play (Canada), Gol Stadium (Spain)
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