Eibar vs Barça: Preview
The champions end the league season with a tough trip before the Cup Final
SD Eibar (12th, 46pts) vs FC Barcelona (Champions, 86pts)
Competition/Round: 2018-19 La Liga, Matchday 38
Barcelona Outs & Doubts: Marc-André ter Stegen, Luis Suárez, Arthur, Ousmane Dembélé, Philippe Coutinho, Rafinha, Kevin-Prince Boateng, Jeison Murillo, Thomas Vermaelen (out)
Eibar Outs & Doubts: Anaitz Arbilla, Rubén Peña (out), Marc Cardona, Pedro Bigas, Paulo Oliveira (doubt)
Date/Time: Sunday, May 19, 2019, 4.15pm CET (Barcelona), 3.15pm BST/WAT (UK & Nigeria), 10.15am ET, 7.15am PT (USA), 7.45pm IST (India)
Venue: Estadio Municipal de Ipurúa, Eibar, Spain
Referee: José Luís Munuera Montero
How to watch on TV: beIN SPORTS (USA, Canada, Spain), Eleven Sports 1 (UK), SuperSport 7 (Nigeria), others
How to stream: FuboTV (USA), beIN SPORTS CONNECT (USA, Canada, Spain), others
Barcelona and Eibar play the cerimonial last game of the La Liga season when they meet at the Ipurúa Stadium in Eibar. The champions have a chance to finish the season with 89 points, 27 wins and over 90 goals scored, which is a very impressive record and something that would make fans of any team very happy.
But we are Barcelona fans, and we are not happy. 89 points, 27 wins and 90 goals would be amazing if that was the result of great performances, but the performances didn’t matter at all as long as we got 89 points, 27 wins and 90 goals along with the trophy. That kind of pragmatism and simplistic approach is frustrating, so the hope on Sunday is that Barça give us some kind of encouragement for the Copa del Rey Final and next season.
For that to happen, Ernesto Valverde has to do one simple thing: play the kids. Todibo, Aleñá, Riqui Puig, Malcom, Abel Ruiz. All of them must start at Eibar, because they deserve to and we are exhausted of the same boring lineups every week. The Valencia game is an easy excuse to rotate so most of the players have two full weeks to rest and practice, so giving the young players a full 90 minutes is not a tough decision to make.
Let’s hope Valverde does the right thing for once, and let’s have fun watching the young boys.
POSSIBLE LINEUPS
Barcelona (4-3-3): Cillessen; Semedo, Todibo, Umtiti, Alba; Aleñá, Rakitic, Puig; Malcom, Messi, Ruiz
Eibar (4-2-3-1): Dmitrovic; De Blasis, Ramis, Álvarez, Cote; Jordán, Escalante; León, Orellana, Cucurella; Enrich
PREDICTION
Once again, not a prediction but a demand: play the kids, let them shine and win 3-0.
Source: barcablaugranes.com
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