Home comforts give Barcelona the edge over Sevilla

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The hosts look favourites to win at the Camp Nou

Barcelona will be aiming to continue their improved form against Sevilla on Sunday night at the Camp Nou following a turbulent start to the season.

Let’s take a look at Sevilla’s current run of form and determine whether or not the hosts will have an easy time coming away with a much-needed three points.

Currently, Sevilla sit in sixth place in La Liga, tied on 13 points with Barca. On average, they have let in a goal per game, with seven goals conceded in seven matches. On the attack, Sevilla have racked up 10 goals, which is an average of 1.4 goals scored per game.

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Let’s now take a deeper look at Sevilla’s defence. At the start of the season, their defensive record was highly impressive - the side only conceded one goal in their first four matches. Some of their defensive highlights came in their 2-0 away win against Espanyol, where they limited the home side to just two shots on target. Their defensive performance in the 1-0 win over Alaves prevented the home side from even registering a shot on target.

Unfortunately, their fifth league game against Real Madrid marked a turning point. While they only conceded one goal, Sevilla’s failure to find the back of the net resulted in the Galacticos sealing a 1-0 away win. From that moment, Sevilla’s defensive record plummeted dramatically, as they conceded three in a 3-2 loss to Eibar. While this loss was followed by a 3-2 win over Real Sociedad, it can be argued that Sevilla should not have conceded two goals at home against a side of a considerably weaker stature.

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On the offensive front, Sevilla have been able to find the back of the net consistently, however they have not been overwhelmingly impressive in their efforts. Sure, they managed to shock Espanyol at home by putting away two unanswered goals, however managing only one goal against the likes of Granada and Celta Vigo proves that they were lacking some firepower, at least at the start of the season.

Looking at Barca’s performance to date, there are numerous areas where the Blaugranes overshadow their opponents from Andalusia. Two 5-2 victories at home as well as 2-1 victories against Villarreal and Inter (in the Champions League) prove that Barca are having no trouble when it comes to scoring at home.

Considering that this is a home match, Barca will certainly be going into the fixture with an advantage.

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Also important to note is Barca’s ability to outscore their opponents. While the Blaugranes have conceded 10 goals, they have scored an impressive 16 in response. Even if Sevilla do somehow restrict Barca with their defensive efforts, recent history shows that the visitors may not have the goods up front to stage a comeback should the Blaugranes manage to grab the odd goal as they have done on many an occasion.

The above considerations, along with Sevilla’s struggles to show up against top opposition, should provide the Blaugranes with the confidence they need to pull off a convincing win on Sunday. While this has not been a dream start to the season, the one place where Barca have firmly refused to disappoint is in front of their home crowd at the Camp Nou.

Source: barcablaugranes.com