La Liga: Granada vs Barca
At 1:30 a.m. Beijing time on January 9, 2022, the 20th round of La Liga, Barca will play Granada away. Barca this season can be said to be ups and downs, the summer window core striker Messi left the team, Griezmann was dug back by Atletico, with the poor performance of the league and champions league results, the club had to open a coaching process, by the former Barça star Xavi accepted the coach seal, the team's results can be said to have improved, after the current first half, with 31 points ranked 5th in the league, and the gap with the championship group is not small, there is a 15-point gap from the leader Real Madrid, it can be seen that the chance of impacting the top of the list is slim, fortunately, the gap with the Champions League and only 1 point, The team's return to the top 4 can still be expected.
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, coach Xavi said, "Tomorrow's game is very important for us, Granada is momentum now, so are we, and winning two consecutive games has given us confidence. We want to accomplish our goal of reaching the Champions League qualification zone. This race is a great opportunity to prove that we are on the right path. It can be seen that Barca still has no lack of warlike intention for this game against Granada. And Harvey also leaked, striker Depay recovered well, this game can be played.
Granada started the season without winning in seven games, and since entering October 2021, the team has embarked on a rebound journey, and now after the first half of La Liga, the team has achieved a record of 5 wins, 8 draws and 6 defeats, rising to 13th place in the league with 23 points. Looking back at Granada's record in the first half, the team still has certain shining points, including a 1-1 draw with the opponent Barca, a 2-1 win over the sheets of the team Atletico Madrid, and a 1-0 victory over Sevilla, which shows that its strength is still a certain threat.
Although Granada has recently stumbled in the cup, but in the league end of the points grab is very strong, has been 6 consecutive rounds of league unbeaten, the team's wave of performance, can not be separated from the rebound of the attack end, especially forward Molina's personal performance is very outstanding, many consecutive games to help the team break the opponent's door, and even a single game has achieved a personal hat trick. It is worth noting that Granada has been in excellent home form recently, winning at home in three consecutive league rounds.
In terms of past encounters between the two teams, Granada has faced Barca in the past 10 times, with 2 wins, 2 draws and 6 defeats, and its past performance is at a disadvantage, while the first leg of this season forced Barca to draw 1-1 away from home, and it is not afraid of opponents. In terms of recent developments, Granada has recently recovered significantly, remaining unbeaten in six consecutive league games, while Barca are also in good shape and are full of interest in grabbing points. Judging from the current attitude of all parties, the performance is slightly ambiguous, but combined with the underlying strength of both sides, Barca still has the opportunity to take all 3 points, after all, the skinny camel is bigger than the horse.