Coming off a morale-raising 3-1 win against Napoli in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 tie, Barcelona will now face Atletico Madrid at the Wanda Metropolitano tonight for gameweek 29 of La Liga.
A win here would mean Barcelona would head into the final international break of the season on a high, even though La Liga seems out of their reach right now.
With Joao Cancelo injured, though, Xavi has opted to use Hector Fort as the left-back tonight, while Jules Kounde continues as the right-back. Ronald Araujo and Pau Cubarsi have also been given the license to retain their spots in central defence.
This back-four will be given the task to screen Marc-Andre ter Stegen in goal.
There is one major, and unexpected change in midfield, with Fermin Lopez being benched in favour of Sergi Roberto. Ilkay Gundogan and Andreas Christensen remain unchanged in midfield, though, with the latter as the holding midfielder.
Robert Lewandowski has been given the license to start as the striker, while Lamine Yamal has been rested in favour of Raphinha on the right-wing.
The big inclusion is Joao Felix, who takes over the left-wing. Xavi will be counting on the Portuguese, hoping that he delivers once again vs Atletico Madrid with the chip on his shoulder.
🚨 BARÇA XI 🚨#AtletiBarça pic.twitter.com/4YTb8WuW2Y
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) March 17, 2024
Confirmed XI: ter Stegen; Kounde, Araujo, Cubarsi, Fort; Roberto, Christensen, Gundogan; Raphinha, Lewandowski, Felix
Source link : https://barcauniversal.com/official-barcelona-4-3-3-starting-lineup-against-atletico-madrid/
Author : Udhav Arora
Publish date : 2024-03-17 18:39:10
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.