Things are going to go down to the bitter end in La Liga. With two matches to go, Barcelona, Atlético Madrid, and Real Madrid are separated by just a single point in the title race, and one slip by one of that trio could completely change the course of the league season.
Barcelona vs. Espanyol 2016 live stream: Start time, TV schedule and how to watch La Liga online
Barcelona are still barely holding onto their title hopes, but their cross-town rivals will hope to ruin the dream.
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That makes a local rivalry match like the one Barcelona face with Espanyol coming to the Camp Nou all the more important. Anything can happen in such matches -- form and quality take a back seat to passion and fight. Espanyol already held Barcelona to a 0-0 draw once this season, and you can guarantee that if they have a chance to knock their bigger neighbors down a peg or two, they will fight all the harder just to take that chance.
What’s at stake
Simply put, Barcelona have to win. There’s no room for error for them right now -- Atlético Madrid are still level with them on points and have two extremely winnable matches, and Real Madrid are just one point back and don’t look likely to lose either. The La Liga title race is going down to the wire, and one slip could cost Barcelona everything.
Espanyol have something on the line too -- they haven’t completely secured safety from relegation quite yet. It would take a disastrous and unlucky finish to the season for them to go down at this point, having to lose out while four of the teams below them win their last two matches. It’s unlikely, but stranger things have happened, and just one point should be enough to see them to safety. Getting that point against their cross-town rivals and ruining their title dreams along the way would be a pretty sweet way of getting that safety, too.
Barcelona injuries and suspensions
Out: Claudio Bravo, Thomas Vermaelen, Sandro Ramirez, Sergi Samper In doubt: Jeremy Mathieu
Espanyol injuries and suspensions
Out: Alvaro, Oscar Duarte, Abraham Gonzalez, Anaitz Arbilla
Match Date/Time: Sunday, 11 a.m. ET, 4 p.m. local
Venue: Camp Nou, Barcelona, Spain
TV: beIN Sports en Español (U.S. - Spanish), Canal+ Partidazo, Canal+ Liga/HD, Abono Futbol 1 (Spain), Sky Sports 2/HD (U.K.)
Online: beIN Sports Connect, fuboTV (U.S.), Sky Go (U.K.)
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