Line-ups, stats and derby preview

Espanyol vs Barcelona Match Preview

Barcelona Games against local rivals Espanyol tend to be a foregone conclusion, but Hansi Flick knows they cannot afford to approach Saturday’s derby as such.

Flick’s men return from their winter vacation at the top of League and four points ahead of its great rival, Real Madrid.

But they have a difficult task for their first match of 2026, with a visit to Espanyol representing a trickier proposition than in years past.

Manolo Gonzalez’s team is fifth in the table after winning their last five league matches while conceding just two goals. They trail only two points at fourth-placed Villarreal.

It’s been just under 19 years since Barca last lost to Espanyol in the away league, but Flick is keen to ensure his side take nothing for granted against their in-form neighbors.

“I would like to congratulate Manolo,” he said. “He does an incredible job. It’s a team that presses very well and makes excellent transitions.

“They have won five games in a row. We will have to play at our highest level, stay calm and play our best football. We have enough quality to achieve victory.”

The return of Barca goalkeeper Joan Garcia to his former club adds extra spice to the match, although that is of little concern to Manolo.

“I don’t care, I don’t care about the problem,” he said. “I care about winning. I don’t really care about the Joan García problem.

“It’s a big sporting rivalry, and the funny thing is that I have a lot of friends who support Barça and we joke with each other.

“Tomorrow will be a big derby. We want to beat Barça, and so do they.”

Team news for Espanyol vs Barcelona

Ramon Terrats (thigh) remains absent for Espanyol, while Charles Pickel is still at CAN with DR Congo.

Ronaldo Araujo is back in the Barcelona squad after taking time away from the team to take care of his mental health.

Andreas Christensen (knee) and Gavi (knee) are still out. However, Dani Olmo (shoulder) is set to make his return and could be joined by Pedri (muscle) in doing so.

Lineups planned for Espanyol – Barcelona

Espanyol: Dmitrovich; El Hilali, Calero, Cabrera, Romero; Gonzalez, Edu, Lozano; Dolan, Fernandez, Milla

Barcelona: J Garcia; Koundé, Cubarsi and Garcia, Baldé; Pedri, De Jong; Yamal, Fermin, Raphinha; F Torres

Statistics for Espanyol vs. Barcelona

• Barcelona and Espanyol have met 74 times, with the Blaugrana winning 47 of those matches.
• Espanyol have only beaten their local rivals seven times, with 20 encounters ending in draws.
• Espanyol have not beaten Barca in La Liga since a 2-1 victory at Camp Nou in February 2009. Their last league victory at home against their neighbors was in January 2007.
• Only Thibaut Courtois (eight) has kept more clean sheets than Espanyol goalkeeper Marko Dmitrovic (seven) in La Liga this season. Barcelona’s Joan Garcia has six.
• Espanyol have the fourth best defensive record in the division, with just 17 goals conceded.
• Yet they face a Barça team whose 51 goals are 15 more than their nearest challenger, Real Madrid.