Three talking points ahead of Real Valladolid vs Barcelona | La Liga GW 34 | OneFootball

Barcelona would have loved to have a matchday off after the game against Inter Milan, especially with the second leg approaching swiftly and the team not having capitalised on the home advantage earlier this week.

Yet, the league mandates that the Blaugrana must play their scheduled game and they will at least find some peace after knowing who they face.

Real Valladolid are not a team one would usually underestimate, but their form in recent months have been simply awful. They have been officially relegated from the league and are not playing for anything more than pride.

They have conceded 81 goals and scored just 24 in 33 games so far this season. For comparison, the next highest goals conceded in the division is 53 by Las Palmas and the difference of 28 goals says everything one needs to know.

Barça Universal brings you three talking points ahead of Real Valladolid vs Barcelona.

The captain’s return

Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s patellar tendon rupture earlier this season was expected to keep him out of action until the beginning of the new campaign, for knee injuries are seldom easy to recover from.

The captain, however, has indeed boosted his recovery as he always planned and is available for the tail end of the season. He returned to training with the group last month and is all set to face Real Valladolid tomorrow.

Ter Stegen returns after seven months. (Photo by Eric Alonso/Getty Images)

Speaking to the media earlier today in his pre-game press conference, Hansi Flick confirmed that Ter Stegen will start tomorrow night and thus make his much-awaited return to the field since he last played in September.

Wojciech Szczesny arrived as a replacement and had done well to replace the club captain in his absence. All signs point to him continuing as the starter in big games this season, but Ter Stegen’s return is a key moment in determining his future too.

While the German will indeed be happy to return to the field tomorrow, it will undoubtedly come with massive pressure especially given Szczesny’s level in recent months. In either case, Ter Stegen’s integration back into the dynamics will be slow and measured.

The lone chance to rotate

Barcelona played Real Madrid and Inter Milan in back-to-back games just over 72 hours apart in the past week. Considering that they played 120 minutes in the Copa del Rey final, the first leg vs the Italians was not easy by any means.

Having just secured a 3-3 draw at home, Barcelona will have to be fresh and rejuvenated for the second leg next week. Needless to say, rotations tomorrow will be key.

Real Valladolid are currently one of the most struggling teams in La Liga and have lost 13 of their last 14 games in La Liga.

Notably, they have eaten five goals against Real Betis, three against Osasuna, four against Getafe and Real Sociedad and seven against Athletic Club in recent games. Needless to say, it is safe to state that they are completely out of sorts.

Barcelona, thus, do not require a team anywhere close to the Gala XI tomorrow and Flick will look to make massive rotations.

Pau Cubarsi and Inigo Martinez are better rested tomorrow with it likely that Andreas Christensen gets his first start of the season alongside Ronald Araujo. Gerard Martin and Hector Fort can start as the full-backs.

In midfield, Pedri and Frenkie de Jong are better rested and the manager may look to deploy Gavi and Eric Garcia alongside Pablo Torre in the attacking midfield role.

Ansu’s chance to impress. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

In attack, Lamine Yamal and Raphinha may well drop to the bench with Fermin Lopez, Ansu Fati and Ferran Torres a solid trio to start. Pau Victor also has options to squeeze in instead of the ‘Shark’.

For the likes of Fati and Torre, the game tomorrow will be a big chance to prove themselves. While Torre has largely done well when called upon, Fati showed great promise in his last appearance and will look to build on the same.

One step closer

Only five games remain in La Liga, and every clash now takes Barcelona ever so close to the title. Atletico Madrid, over the weeks, have crashed out of contention but Real Madrid, somehow, have managed to hold on.

Matchday 35 next week sees Barcelona and Los Blancos face off at Montjuic and the game may well decide the title race. However, there is every possibility that the current matchday itself takes Flick’s side to the cusp of the championship.

While Barcelona face a tame opponent in Real Valladolid and are very likely to comfortably take three points even with a rotated core, Real Madrid face a massive uphill challenge against Celta Vigo.

The Galician team were wronged by Los Blancos in the Copa del Rey earlier this year and they will be out for revenge. Real Madrid, meanwhile, are at their most vulnerable with several injury blows flowing in.

Should Real Madrid slip up and lose against Celta, Barcelona could boast of a seven-point lead over them heading into the Clasico. In such a situation, winning the Clasico will secure Barcelona the league title and there could be no better way to finish the story.