Squad rotation expected as Barcelona face Real Sociedad before Benfica tie | OneFootball

Following a high-voltage 4-4 draw with Atletico Madrid in their first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final, FC Barcelona are set to return to action in La Liga tomorrow as they face Real Sociedad.

This match was previously scheduled to take place today, on Saturday, but has since been rescheduled, and will now be played tomorrow. Thus, the Catalans will get one less day of rest ahead of a crucial UEFA Champions League tie against Benfica.

As Mundo Deportivo has noted, Hansi Flick can make several rotations in his starting line-up for this game.

In the defence, one of the two fixed starters, Inigo Martinez or Pau Cubarsi, can get a rest. The latter has more chances of being rotated for this game, as Martinez did not start the last league game against Las Palmas. Eric Garcia, Ronald Araujo, and Andreas Christensen will all be available to take Cubarsi’s place in the line-up.

Similarly, Jules Kounde did not start the game against Rayo Vallecano as he was penalised for a disciplinary issue. Thus, Flick can decide to give some rest to Alejandro Balde by starting Gerard Martin for this game.

In the midfield, Marc Casado can get back into the starting eleven, after having lost his place to Frenkie de Jong in recent weeks. Similarly, Gavi can also slot back into the attacking midfield position ahead of Dani Olmo.

In the attack, Robert Lewandowski was rested against Atletico Madrid, so he will likely start this game. But one of Raphinha or Lamine Yamal can be rested, with Ferran Torres and Fermin Lopez available to take their positions.

Real Sociedad have several players suspended for this game, including Takefusa Kubo, Aguerd, and Sheraldo Becker. Thus, Barcelona will find getting a result in this game a little bit easier, but still, there is no doubt about the Basque side’s quality and Flick will have to come up with a highly competitive line-up to remain at the top of the league table.