Barcelona find an unexpected opportunity to cut their deficit in La Liga | OneFootball

After starting the 2024-25 season in blazing fashion, which allowed FC Barcelona to go atop the La Liga table with a whopping 9-point lead at one point, the Blaugranes lost most of their steam in the final stretch of the last year.

The overturn of fortunes was so bad that currently, the Catalans are seven points behind the leaders, Real Madrid, and 6 points behind the second-placed Atletico Madrid.

However, as Mundo Deportivo has noted, Barcelona have a golden chance to cut down on this deficit as Real Madrid unexpectedly lost to Espanyol last night. Thus, the Blaugranes do not have any room for error and will have to ensure they get a victory over Alaves in their match later today.

Getting the full three points from this game will put the Catalans within four points of the league leadership. With 16 games left in the competition, this is a good time to start putting pressure on the Merengues, and hopefully get back their first position down the road.

However, another loss can also prove to be fatal to their hopes of winning the La Liga title this year, with Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid both looking like serious contenders for the trophy.

Another factor that will help Barcelona focus fully on La Liga is that they have already made their way to the Round of 16 in the UEFA Champions League, and there is still more than a month left till their next European fixture, which is scheduled for 5th March.

The Catalans have already broken their string of bad results in the league with their last 7-1 win over Valencia, and now Hansi Flick will be looking to take advantage of the fact that Real Madrid will also have to play a UCL playoff game against Manchester City, after facing Atletico Madrid in their next league encounter.