FC Barcelona will host Valencia in La Liga on Saturday.

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FC Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick will make two big changes to his line up when the Catalans host Valencia in La Liga on Sunday evening in Spain.

Barca is coming off a heroic nine goal comeback win against Benfica in the Champions League that could prove to be worth more than $50 million, yet form in La Liga has been patchy.

“I hope we play well,” Flick – who quipped that he’d never lived a remontada like that in Lisbon – stated at his prematch press conference on Saturday afternoon.

“Valencia has stabilised its defence and it knows how to play good football. It’s a difficult game for us because we’ll have to create play to build chances and score goals to win the game,” he added.

With Barca second in the UCL league phase, and third in La Liga some 10 points behind Real Madrid despite previously leading by six themselves, Flick was asked if his team is one thing on the continent and another in Spain.

“We can think that in La Liga we have lost a lot of points. In Getafe [a 1-1 draw last Saturday] it was our fault. But it doesn’t have anything to do with Getafe, it has to do with us, we weren’t focused enough. And that’s what I expect from the team in the next matches,” Flick demanded.

Flick’s men can get back on track by beating relegation-zone lingering Valencia, then.

At the same press conference, the German didn’t want to reveal who his goalkeeper will be between Wojciech Szczesny, who was poor in the first half against Benfica but better in the second, and Inaki Pena.

“Well, you’ll have to wait until Sunday…,” Flick teased, though the ex-Bayern Munich boss is expected to go with Pena after all.

The back line looks the same as usual in a post-Inigo Martinez injury landscape. Pau Cubarsi partners a Ronald Araujo who renewed his contract this week in central defense, with Alejandro Balde and Jules Kounde the left and right backs.

The biggest changes from Flick come in midfield, where Frenkie de Jong benches Marc Casado to partner Pedri in a double pivot while Fermin Lopez is the CAM.

That latter call comes at the expense of Gavi while Dani Olmo is out injured. Fermin has wingers Raphinha and Lamine to his left and right, while Robert Lewandowski is the loan striker.

FC Barcelona First XI Vs Valencia: Pena; Balde, Cubarsi, Araujo, Kounde; Pedri, De Jong; Raphinha, Fermin, Lamine; Lewandowski

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