Overview
Barcelona continues to maintain impressive form in La Liga with 5 consecutive wins and 21 goals.
They entered this match after a 4-2 victory over Levante. Previously, Barca also started the Champions League group stage with a convincing performance with a 5-1 victory over Feyenoord.
Raphinha and Lamine Yamal both have 6 goals in La Liga this season. Raphinha continues to make his mark with his effective ability in the central area, while Yamal is one of Barcelona's important attacking spearheads. With quality in attack, the Catalan team is maintaining great pressure in the championship race.
Historically, Barcelona and Racing have met 101 times in all competitions. Barcelona dominates with 63 wins, while Racing only wins 17 matches.
Racing has not defeated Barcelona since January 2004. Notably, all 8 recent encounters between the two teams in all competitions have ended with victories for Barcelona.
However, Racing is having an encouraging start after returning to La Liga. The blue and white team won the second division championship last season to return to the highest league in Spain.
Jose Alberto Lopez's team will travel to Barcelona's stadium after a 2-1 victory over Alaves. After 5 matches, Racing has 2 wins, 1 draw and 2 defeats, winning 7 points and ranked 10th in the standings.
Racing has scored 9 goals since the beginning of the season, showing relatively effective attacking ability. However, the defense has also conceded 9 times, the most in the top 11 group.
More worryingly, Racing has lost all 2 away matches in La Liga this season. The away match against Barcelona is considered the biggest challenge since this team returned to the top league.
Personnel situation
Barcelona is missing Frenkie de Jong and Rooney Bardghji due to knee injuries. However, the home team is still well prepared before welcoming Racing.
Gerard Martin had to leave the field in the middle of the match against Levante after tearing his face in the first half. The Spanish defender is said to be able to return, but is likely to rest. Andreas Christensen is highly likely to be given a chance to start as a replacement.
In attack, Anthony Gordon is expected to continue to play alongside Raphinha and Lamine Yamal. Xavi Espart is likely to still hold the left-back position.
On Racing's side, Simon Eriksson (shoulder injury), Andres Martin (knee injury) and Andre Almeida (suspension) will not be able to participate in the away match at Camp Nou.
Coach Jose Alberto Lopez may keep the starting lineup that defeated Alaves in the previous match. Sergio Canales is likely to continue to start.
Yassir Zabiri is in high form when scoring 5 goals in 5 appearances since the beginning of the season. The 21-year-old striker is expected to continue to lead Racing's attack.
Expected lineup:
J. Garcia, E. Garcia, Cubarsi, Christensen, Espart, Pedri, Rodri, Fermin, Gordon, Raphinha, Yamal.
Racing de Santander: Agirrezabala, Mantilla, Ramon, Belocian, Salinas, Martin, Prati, Garcia, Canales, Vicente, Zabiri.
The match between Barcelona and Racing de Santander takes place at 2:30 am on September 17 (Vietnam time).
