Barcelona vs Sevilla preview: can Messi lead another improbable comeback? – originally posted on Sportslens.com
Barcelona will be looking to turn the tables on Sevilla when the two sides meet at Camp Nou in the return leg of their Copa del Rey semi-finals tie.
Jules Kounde and Ivan Rakitic led Sevilla to a comfortable 2-0 win in the first leg, putting the visitors in a driving seat ahead of the rematch.
Although a two-goal cushion favours Sevilla, this tie could go down to the wire, as Barcelona have not lost any of their last 12 competitive matches against this opposition at home (W11, D1).
Copa del Rey is probably the only realistic chance each team have to wrap up silverware this season.
Lionel Messi scores and assists as Barcelona beat Sevilla in LaLiga… three days before Copa del Rey semi-final rematchhttps://t.co/FwWilLJPGI
— The Sun Football
(@TheSunFootball) February 27, 2021
Barcelona’s chances of lifting the league crown look pretty slim at the moment, as they trail La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid by five points in the league table despite playing one game more.
Additionally, a 4-1 thumping to Paris Saint-Germain at Camp Nou leaves the Catalans with a mountain to climb in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League last-16 tie.
Meanwhile, the Andalusian side lag ten points behind Atletico and seem to have already given up the title hopes.
Julian Lopetegui’s men also face a daunting prospect of overturning a 3-2 first-leg deficit against Borussia Dortmund in their Champions League last-16 tie.
Barcelona Preview
Coming into the second match of their doubleheader against Sevilla, Ronald Koeman’s men clinched a 2-0 triumph at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in the La Liga weekend.
The hosts have blown hot and cold at Camp Nou lately, accruing a win, a draw, and a loss in their last three competitive matches held at this venue.
Overall this season, Barca have only lost one of their 13 home fixtures on home soil in domestic competitions (W8, D4), courtesy of a 3-1 defeat to bitter rivals Real Madrid.
Quick out of the blocks, the Catalan giants have scored the opening goal in 64.71% of their competitive home matches this season.
Barcelona have also proved hard to get knocked down off their perch, surrendering the points in only one of their eight competitive home games in which they were ahead at half-time (W7, D1).
Sevilla Preview
Only two of Sevilla’s 16 competitive matches since the turn of the year have ended in a draw (W11, L3) and none of the last 11 (W9, L2).
The ‘clean-sheet’ theme remains significant in the context of the visitors’ results recorded in 2021.
Nine of their 11 competitive wins this calendar have been accompanied by a blank sheet, while two of their three defeats saw Sevilla fail to find the net.
Ahead of the kick-off, Los Rojiblancos have kept a clean sheet in three consecutive away fixtures in various competitions while scoring 2+ goals twice in the process.
Low-scoring first halves have been a common theme for Lopetegui’s side this term, as ten (83.33%) of their 12 La Liga away outings have featured under 1.5 goals before half-time.
Team News
Barcelona
Out: Philippe Coutinho, Ansu Fati, Miralem Pjanic, Sergi Roberto
Doubts: N/A
Sevilla
Out: N/A
Doubts: Lucas Ocampos, Marcos Acuna
Predicted Line-ups
Barcelona (5-3-2): Marc-Andre ter Stegen; Oscar Mingueza; Ronald Araujo; Gerard Pique; Sergino Dest; Jordi Alba; Sergio Busquets; Frenkie de Jong; Pedri; Ousmane Dembele; Lionel Messi
Sevilla (4-2-3-1): Bono; Diego Carlos; Jules Kounde; Jesus Navas; Sergio Escudero; Fernando; Joan Jordan; Ivan Rakitic; Alejandro Gomez; Suso; Youssef En Nesyri