Following their first El Clásico defeat of the Hansi Flick era, Barcelona are back in action on Sunday when they welcome Elche to Catalonia.
October was a nightmare of a month for Barcelona. Flick’s side looked a shadow of its 2024–25 self and lost as many games in October as it had the previous eight months of the calendar year.
A humbling defeat against Real Madrid means Barça are now five points back of their rivals in the early stages of the title race. If the Catalans want to defend their La Liga crown, they need to return to form fast given how formidable Xabi Alonso’s team is looking.
Injuries have severely compromised Barcelona this term. Key players such as Raphinha and Joan García remain sidelined and now, after being shown a red card in El Clásico, Pedri will miss up to two months with a hamstring injury.
Frenkie de Jong’s presence will grow in importance and Marc Casadó along with Marc Bernal will likely get more minutes to impress. Despite the injuries, Sunday’s match is a must-win game for Barcelona to restore the confidence of a wounded side, and the returns of Robert Lewandowski and Dani Olmo will only help the defending Spanish champions.
Here’s how Barcelona could lineup vs. Elche.
Barcelona Predicted Lineup vs. Elche (4-2-3-1)
GK: Wojciech Szczęsny—The veteran was one of the few Barcelona bright spots in El Clásico. Szczęsny had nine saves including a penalty save against Kylian Mbappé.
RB: Jules Koundé—The Frenchman has been prone to mistakes this term after a brilliant 2024–25. If his slump continues, his place in the lineup could be in jeopardy moving forward.
CB: Ronald Araújo—Flick has been hesitant to grant Araújo opportunities at center back given he’s prone to mistakes. However, his physicality and ability to defend in open space is exactly what Barcelona have been lacking off late.
CB: Pau Cubarsí—The teenager has struggled since Iñigo Martínez’s departure. He’s looked uncomfortable all season, but he remains Barcelona’s best available center back.
LB: Alejandro Balde—Balde has had a quiet season overall, but there’s no denying his quality and he remains an untouchable part of Flick’s lineup.
CM: Marc Casadó—The La Masia graduate is in for an extended run as a starter while Pedri is on the mend. Casadó filled in admirably when De Jong missed the opening months of last term and will try to re-establish himself in Barça’s midfield.
CM: Frenkie de Jong—De Jong will likely be tasked with taking over Pedri’s role as Barcelona’s conductor in the middle of the pitch.
RW: Lamine Yamal—Yamal’s off-field antics have been more talked about than his performances on the pitch lately. It’s time for Barça’s No. 10 to do his talking on the pitch; he’s still clearly not fully recovered from a nagging groin injury, though.
AM: Fermín López—Fermín followed up his maiden Champions League hat-trick with a goal against Real Madrid. The vibrant attacker has been excellent since returning from injury and he’ll look to continue the positive momentum.
LW: Marcus Rashford—It’s been a strong start to Rashford’s Barcelona career. Filling-in for Raphinha, the England international has goal involvements in six of Barça’s last seven games.
ST: Ferran Torres—The former Manchester City man started the season strong but his level has dipped recently. With Lewandowski back in the squad, it could be a matter of time before Torres gives way for the Pole.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Barcelona Predicted Lineup vs. Elche: Who Replaces Pedri?.