FC Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick will make rotations in midfield and defence when his team hosts crosstown rivals Espanyol in Montjuïc for a La Liga clash on Sunday. With tragic flooding causing more than 200 deaths in the Valencia region, Flick showed a preference towards suspending the fixture in question at his prematch press conference on Saturday afternoon.
“It isn't easy to make a decision about what to do. It already happened three years ago in Germany. We support all those affected but it is a matter of La Liga [to decide],” he said when first broached on the topic.
At another point of his sitdown before journalists and reporters, however, Flick was firmer when stating, “If I could make the decision, maybe I would do it because it is a tragedy for Valencia and for Spain as a whole,” with regards to calling off matches across the country.
As things stand, though, Barca will indeed take to the field at 16.15 local time, and Flick insisted he knows “what a Barca-Espanyol derby entails”.
“It will be a tough game, for sure. After a fantastic week, it's important to be one hundred percent tomorrow, with intensity and maximum quality,” the German stressed.
Though he was tight-lipped on rotations, Flick has been expected to make them across three games in 12 days before the next international break, and will at least do so in midfield. This means that Dani Olmo starts though neither Pedri nor Marc Casado are rested. Fermin Lopez - fresh off signing a new contract - loses his place.
The rest of the team almost looks identical to that which thrashed Bayern Munich and Real Madrid 4-1 and 0-4 respectively last week. It finds Inaki Pena in the net protected by a back line of Alejandro Balde, Inigo Martinez, Pau Cubarsi but Jules Kounde is replaced by Hector Fort at right back. While on the front line, Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski and Lamine Yamal continue to form one of club football's deadliest attacking trios.
It will be interesting to see how many minutes substitute De Jong gets with an impressive 45 at the Bernabeu the most he has played this season.
At some point, Gavi might also enjoy more time on the pitch after three short cameos in Barca's last three outings.
Barcelona vs Espanyol Match Preview
Barcelona face a tricky Catalan derby test on Sunday as they host Espanyol at the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium in this key Spanish Primera fixture. It's been a superb start to the season for the league-leading Blaugrana under new boss Hansi Flick, with statement wins in October over Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League as well as Alaves, Sevilla and Real Madrid in La Liga.
With Real not playing this weekend due to their match with Valencia being postponed, a win today for Barca would see them open up a massive 9 point lead over their title rivals at the top of the table. Espanyol are struggling in 17th position in the division, but come into this derby clash off the back of a 4-0 win over San Tirso in the Copa del Rey.
How to Watch the Barcelona vs Espanyol Game Live
Barcelona take on Espanyol at the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium on Sunday, Nov. 3. Kickoff is set for 4:15 p.m. CET local time, making it a 10:15 a.m. ET and 7:15 a.m. PT start in the US, a 3:15 p.m. start in the UK and a 2:15 a.m. AEDT kickoff in Australia early on Sunday morning. Below, we'll outline the best live TV streaming services to use to watch the game as it happens, wherever you are in the world.
Watching in the US
This match is available to stream in the US via ESPN Plus, which has live English and Spanish-language broadcast rights for La Liga in the States. ESPN's standalone streaming service costs $11 a month or $110 for an annual subscription.
Watching in the UK
Premier Sports will be showing a minimum of five live matches per week from Spain's top league on its Premier Sports 1 and 2 channels, as well as its dedicated La Liga platform. This game will be shown exclusively live on Premier Sports 2. A subscription to just Premier Sports' dedicated La Liga channel costs £8 a month.
Watching in Canada
TSN is the rights holder for live coverage of La Liga matches in the region, with select fixtures being shown on its linear channels, and a wider selection of games being shown on its TSN Plus streaming platform. This match is set to be shown on TSN Plus. TSN Plus is a direct-streaming service that costs CA$8 a month and also offers coverage of PGA Tour Live golf, NFL games, F1, NASCAR and the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments.
Watching in Australia
Footy fans down under can once again watch La Liga fixtures live on BeIn Sports, which holds the live broadcast rights in Australia for Spanish top-flight matches. This match is set to be shown on BeIn Sports 2. BeIn Sports is available in Australia for AU$15 a month or a yearly commitment of AU$130.
Using a VPN
If you find yourself unable to view La Liga matches locally, you may need a different way to watch the games -- that's where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, and it's also a great idea if you're traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.
With a VPN, you're able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. Most VPNs, like our Editors' Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this.
Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Canada, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you're streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.
Barcelona vs Espanyol Match Report
The Blaugrana were in complete control from the start, with Dani Olmo scoring twice in the first half, including a spectacular goal in the 12th minute.
Barcelona's attack was relentless, with Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Lamine Yamal causing havoc for the Espanyol defense.
Raphinha scored Barcelona's second goal in the 23rd minute, heading home a cross from Marc Casadó.
Olmo completed his brace in the 31st minute with a powerful shot from the edge of the box to put Barcelona 3-0 up.
Espanyol pulled a goal back in the 63rd minute when Javi Puado headed home a cross from Carlos Romero, but Barcelona held on comfortably to secure the three points.
Barcelona's victory was a statement of intent, as they continue to impress under Hansi Flick. Espanyol, on the other hand, remain in a precarious position, just one point above the relegation zone.
Barcelona vs Espanyol Key Takeaways
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Barcelona extended their lead at the top of La Liga to nine points with a convincing victory over Espanyol.
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Dani Olmo was the star of the show, scoring twice and dictating the tempo of the game.
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Barcelona's attack was relentless, with Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Lamine Yamal causing havoc for the Espanyol defense.
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Espanyol remain in a precarious position, just one point above the relegation zone.
What's Next for Barcelona and Espanyol
Barcelona will be looking to continue their winning streak when they travel to face Real Sociedad next weekend. Espanyol will be hoping to bounce back from their derby defeat when they host Real Valladolid at home.
Barcelona vs Espanyol Player Ratings
Barcelona
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Iñaki Peña: 7.0 - Made a few important saves and was generally commanding in goal.
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Héctor Fort: 7.5 - A solid performance at right back.
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Pau Cubarsí: 7.0 - A dependable presence at centre back.
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Iñigo Martínez: 7.0 - Had a strong defensive performance.
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Alejandro Balde: 8.0 - Provided a constant threat down the left flank and provided a key assist for Olmo's second goal.
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Marc Casadó: 7.5 - A neat and tidy performance in midfield.
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Pedri: 7.0 - Controlled the tempo of the game and provided some excellent passes.
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Dani Olmo: 9.0 - Scored twice and was a constant threat throughout the game.
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Raphinha: 8.0 - A lively performance on the right wing, scoring Barcelona's second goal.
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Robert Lewandowski: 7.5 - Was a constant nuisance to the Espanyol defense and came close to scoring a few times.
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Lamine Yamal: 8.5 - Provided a dangerous outlet on the left wing and delivered a brilliant assist for Olmo's first goal.
Espanyol
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Joan García: 6.0 - Was unable to prevent Barcelona from scoring three goals.
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Álvaro Tejero: 6.0 - Was caught out of position on a few occasions.
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Omar El Hilali: 6.0 - Struggled to deal with Barcelona's attacking threat.
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Marash Kumbulla: 6.0 - Had a difficult time against Barcelona's forwards.
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Leandro Cabrera: 6.0 - Was unable to contain Barcelona's attack.
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Carlos Romero: 6.5 - Was one of Espanyol's brighter sparks, but was unable to have a significant impact on the game.
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Alex Král: 6.0 - Struggled to control the midfield.
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Álvaro Aguado: 6.0 - Was unable to provide much support to his forwards.
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Rafael Bauza: 6.0 - Had a quiet game in midfield.
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Jofre Carreras: 6.5 - Tried hard but was unable to make a real difference.
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Javi Puado: 7.0 - Scored Espanyol's only goal with a fine header, but was otherwise limited.
