At 4:00 a.m. Beijing time on January 3, the 19th round of La Liga will usher in a focus battle, barca away to challenge Mallorca. As the first game of 2022, Xavi must not disappoint the Barca fans. However, Barca's recent situation is not as good as before, even in the face of Mallorca, Xavi does not have full confidence, and Xavi can only say that he strives to lead Barca to 3 points. At present, Barca are 7th in La Liga, the title is hopeless, and the top 4 positions are also in jeopardy.
In La Liga, Mallorca and Barca have met a total of 65 times, with Barca having the upper hand with 38 wins, 11 draws and 16 defeats. In the past 13 years of meeting in La Liga, Mallorca has not won a single victory, and Barca have gone unbeaten in 10 games and extended their seven-game winning streak. During this period, Barca scored four times, 5-0 twice, 5-2 and 1 4-0. From the historical data, Mallorca is powerless in front of Barca, but now that Barca is in an eventful autumn, Mallorca may not have no chance to wash away the shame.
Key statistics of the match:
Mallorca have lost all seven of their last seven la Liga games against Barca, with five of them losing clean sheets and conceding an average of four goals per game.
Barca have won 11 of their last 12 away games against Mallorca, including the most recent five-game winning streak, with the only exception coming 13 years ago, when Barca lost 2-1 to Mallorca.
Barca have won just seven of their first 18 league games this season, the lowest number of wins in the same period since the 03/04 season.
At the pre-match press conference, Xavi opened up Barca's difficulties, and the Barca coach told reporters: "We are in an extreme situation, and there are as many as 17 people on the injury list. This game should be postponed and although Mallorca has difficulties too, they are in a better situation than we are. Tomorrow's game won't make much sense, but I'll try to get 3 points." The situation in Barcelona is not optimistic, and the situation in Barcelona can be clearly seen from Xavi's interview, after all, the Barça legend himself has no belief in victory.
Perhaps Xavi will be punched in the face again, after being eliminated by Bayern in the Champions League, Xavi threatened to win the last three games of 2021, resulting in Barca losing 4 points with 1 win and 2 draws. This time against Mallorca, Xavi's Barca have no advantage in the past, and Mallorca's current form is very outstanding, they have won 6 of the last 9 games, and Mallorca has only won 8 games so far in the season. Counting the old and the new, Mallorca was clearly holding back.
At present, Barca ranks 7th in La Liga, 18 points behind Real Madrid at the top of the table, and there is no hope of winning the title. Coupled with the Champions League exit, Barca lost a large amount of money, and the team is in a very critical condition. Once Barca can't get on track quickly, then the top 4 in La Liga will be a nuisance, and they will lose their Champions League qualification next season. Some people may say that Barca still has the road to the Europa League, but dare to ask this Barca can really win in the Europa League?