Both Barcelona and Real Madrid will be looking to recover from
defeats with this weekend's round of Spanish league play.
Barcelona will also be hoping not to lose any more players to
injury against Racing Santander on Saturday after midfielders Xavi
Hernandez and Seydou Keita both suffered leg injuries in last
weekend's 2-1 defeat at Atletico Madrid - the Spanish leader's
first loss of the season.
With a Champions League match at Stuttgart next week, it
cannot afford to lose any more players ahead of coach Pep
Guardiola's 100th game in charge of the European champions.
"There are a lot of people who wanted us to lose our first
game and now they're happy and hopeful we have doubts," defender
Gerard Pique said on Thursday. "Inside the dressing room there are
no doubts."
With Barcelona out of the Copa del Rey, playing fewer games
may actually have been a handicap to a club that is used to playing
twice a week according to midfielder Sergio Busquets.
"There are injuries that have an explanation and others that
just happen," Busquets said. "We prefer to play every two or three
days."
Although Barcelona's recent form has been uninspiring - with
striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic struggling with only one goal in seven
league games - Racing has only ever won twice at the Camp Nou in 41
games there, and not since the 1982-83 season.
Madrid trails its Catalan rival by two points and plays at
the Santiago Bernabeu stadium a day later. It has only lost one of
its 15 home matches so far this season - to AC Milan.
But Tuesday's 1-0 defeat at Lyon exposed Madrid's
overconfidence again.
Madrid promised to beat Liverpool one year ago but was
eliminated from the Champions League at the first knockout stage
for the fifth straight season.
"The truth is we didn't expect to lose that match,"
goalkeeper Iker Casillas said.
High-price acquisitions Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka came under
fire for their failure to impress in the sorry defeat at Stade
Gerland, while coach Manuel Pellegrini has also come under scrutiny
for his tactics.
The Chilean coach could welcome midfielder Rafael Van der
Vaart back into the lineup, while counterpart Jose Maria "Guti"
Gutierrez is doubtful with a groin strain.
"Pellegrini has told us to stay calm," defender Ezequiel
Garay said Thursday, adding that a victory "would be a nice way of
getting rid of the bad taste left by the Champions (League)."
Villarreal is without defenders Gonzalo Rodriguez (thigh) and
Diego Godin (suspension).
Behind the front-runners, the race for European places
continues with third-place Valencia facing Getafe on Monday, while
Sevilla and Mallorca meet on Sunday.
Fourth-place Sevilla is waiting on the health of Frederic
Kanoute while fellow striker Lautaro Acosta should be available for
the trip to the Ono Estadi, where Mallorca has yet to drop a point
in 10 league matches. Sevilla has lost three straight on the road.
Valencia has 43 points, Sevilla 39, Mallorca 37 and Deportivo
La Coruna is sixth with 35.
In Sunday's other games, it's: Malaga vs. Espanyol; Athletic
Bilbao vs. Tenerife; Osasuna vs. Valladolid; Zaragoza vs. Sporting
Gijon; and Almeria vs. Atletico Madrid.
Deportivo plays last-place Xerez on Saturday.
