Barcelona failed to maintain its lead in La Liga on Saturday when they played to a 1-1 draw with Valencia, extending their winless streak to three matches in all competitions. Heading into this round, the Catalans sit in third place in the table and desperately need a win before the Christmas break to revive their hopes of securing consecutive La Liga titles for the first time since the 2018/19 season. Their last 11 league games have been disappointing, so a match against “Almeria” could help “Bar?a” end the year on a higher note. They have only lost one of their previous 16 encounters, although that sole defeat came in their last duel, a 2-4 loss at home to Girona. This defeat emphasized that the hosts are not invincible and even unconvincing at the “Olympic Luis Companys” stadium, as it followed six home league games with victories by just one goal. Unavailable for the match are De Jong, ter Stegen, Martinez, Gavi, and Alonso, who is dealing with a back injury.
Last Sunday, “Almeria” played to a goalless draw with Mallorca, but this result keeps them at the bottom of the table as the only La Liga team yet to win this season. However, two draws and two losses by a one-goal margin in their last four league matches suggest that the visitors might be close to ending their winless streak. Whether the Andalusians can secure their first precious victory against Barcelona seems doubtful, especially considering that each of their eight previous visits to the Spanish giants ended in defeat, with six of those matches seeing them fail to score. The current form also suggests that bookmakers have understood this well, as “Almeria” has suffered defeat in their last seven away league matches. Nonetheless, they can at least hope to get on the scoresheet, having scored goals in five of those games. Not available for the match are Sviderksi, Suarez, Robertone, Pabill, Milovanovich, and Kone, who is nursing an ankle injury.
