Barcelona are threatening to run away with the La Liga title race, and a win over relegation battlers Deportivo Alaves will help them along in that path. Alaves have been in decent form of late, winning two of their last four matches in the league, but they don’t seem to have the form or quality to successfully take the Blaugranes down right now.
Barcelona vs. Alavés 2018 live stream: Time, TV schedule, and how to watch online
For Barcelona, this match is as much about seeing what Coutinho can do for them as it is about the La Liga title race.
Photo by Manuel Queimadelos Alonso/Getty Images
That’s not to denigrate Alaves is any way — they’re a solid enough team that’s where they are as much because of some bad luck with injuries as anything else — but Barcelona are just ridiculously good right now, and they just got even better recently. That’s because they signed Philippe Coutinho from Liverpool this month, and he’s slated to make his full debut in this match after coming on as a substitute in Barcelona’s midweek Copa del Rey win over Espanyol.
Coutinho gives them a little more depth in attack and a bit of a different kind of presence on the wing or in midfield than they had before signing him. Because apparently what Barcelona needed was an even more lethal and diverse attack, but here we are. He’s probably not going to be a megastar right away with the Blaugranes, as he has a complex system to learn and a lot of high-caliber players to get chemistry with, but any starts he gets in the meantime will bear close monitoring to see just how fast he can get bedded in and playing at his best.
Match info, plus how to watch on TV and stream
Match Date/Time: Sunday, 2:45 p.m. ET, 8:45 p.m. local
Venue: Camp Nou, Barcelona, Spain
TV: beIN Sports (U.S. - English), beIN Sports en Español (U.S. - Spanish), Movistar Partidazo, Movistar+ (Spain)
Online: fuboTV, beIN Sports Connect (U.S.)
Make friends: Check out Barca Blaugranes for more Barcelona coverage.
Listings for more countries can be found at LiveSoccerTV.
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