Barcelona returned to winning ways in La Liga by thumping new boys Leganes 5-1 last weekend and the victory means that the Catalan giants have maintained pressure on leaders Real Madrid at the top of the table.
It is still very early to be drawing too many conclusions from the league table at the moment and Barcelona will surely be only concentrating on taking things one game at a time.
Up next for Barcelona in La Liga is a clash against title rivals Atletico Madrid at the Nou Camp on Wednesday night and one can be sure that the encounter will prove to be a huge test for Luis Enrique’s men.
Here is the strongest possible Barcelona lineup for the clash –
Goalkeeper
Marc-Andre ter Stegen had very little to do throughout the game against Leganes but he would surely have been left a bit disappointed at conceding a late goal.
The German international will most probably have more to do against Atletico in midweek and the Barcelona custodian will have to work hard to keep a clean sheet this time around.
Defence
Luis Enrique surprisingly went with a three man defence consisting of Samuel Umtiti, Javier Mascherano and Gerard Pique on Saturday and it will be interesting to see if the 46-year-old decides to employ the same defensive structure on Wednesday night.
If Barcelona revert to a four man defence, Mascherano looks the most likely candidate to be omitted from the start. At left back, Jordi Alba is expected to continue while Sergi Roberto may well replace Rafinha on the other flank.
Midfield
Sergio Busquets was handed a complete rest during the clash against Leganes and it is widely expected that the Spanish international will be making a return to the lineup during the encounter with Atletico.
Busquets should partner the impressive duo of Andres Iniesta and Ivan Rakitic at the middle of the park on the night while the likes of Denis Suarez and Andre Gomes will also be hopeful of featuring in some capacity during the clash.
Attack
The fantastic trio of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez all got on the scoresheet on Saturday but despite their wonderful run of form, doing so again on Wednesday will be very difficult against a solid Atletico backline.
