How will Barcelona line up against Valencia in the La Liga season opener?

The wait is over and a new season of Barcelona football is here as the Catalans kick off their 2024-25 La Liga campaign with a trip to Mestalla to face off against historic rivals Valencia on Saturday night.

Hansi Flick will take charge of his first competitive game in charge in the middle of a rapidly changing squad and much movement still to come in the final two weeks of the transfer window, but a promising preseason — despite the bad defeat to Monaco in the Joan Gamper Trophy — offers fans hope for an entertaining season where Barça will be competitive in every game under their new coach.

Here’s how we think Hansi will line up his troops for Saturday’s first battle.

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Defense

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Predicting the first lineup of the season is a nearly impossible task for many reasons: several players have just arrived after vacation, many with plenty of preseason minutes under their belt are youngsters who are no longer part of the first team dynamic as of this week, and quite a few players are not even registered yet as of this writing. So this is our best guess based on Flick’s choices in preseason and the importance of the game.

At the back, with Marc-André ter Stegen ready to begin his 11th season in goal, there’s only one real doubt based on the status of Iñigo Martínez who hasn’t been registered as of this writing. But if the Basque defender is cleared to play in time, we think he’ll start alongside Jules Kounde at right-back, Andreas Christensen as his center-back partner and Alejandro Balde on the left.

Midfield

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The double pivot pairing of Marc Bernal and Marc Casadó was Flick’s big bet in preseason, and the results were nearly perfect other than a big Bernal mistake in the last friendly against Monaco. But the two showed excellent chemistry and didn’t seem overwhelmed to be playing for the first time against first division opposition, and it’s safe to assume they will begin the season as Hansi’s first choice double pivot until either a new signing arrives or Frenkie de Jong and Gavi return.

Flick went with his favorite 4-2-3-1 shape for almost all of preseason, leaving one spot in midfield with a number 10 in front of the Marc Brothers. That spot on Saturday will likely go to Ilkay Gündogan, but it’ll undoubtedly remain the most competitive position in the entire team with Pedri, Dani Olmo and Fermín López all looking to play in that spot once their fitness levels catch up with the rest of the squad.

Attack

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Despite his very concerning performances in preseason, Robert Lewandowski figures to still be Barça’s top choice at the striker position despite the amazing performances of young Pau Víctor, who has done enough to truly challenge Lewy but will likely be the Pole’s backup at least to start the season.

Víctor could still start against Valencia on the right wing as he did for most of preseason, but we think Flick will go with Lamine Yamal after the teenager’s brilliant cameo against Monaco. Yamal looked fresh, fit and with no signs of fatigue after just returning from vacation, and should be ready to play from the get-go with a full week to train.

The left wing starter will likely be Raphinha, with Dani Olmo not ready to start just yet and no other real wing options available in the squad.

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Possible XI: Ter Stegen; Kounde, Christensen, Iñigo, Balde; Bernal, Casadó; Yamal, Gündogan, Raphinha; Lewandowski (4-2-3-1)

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How do you think Barcelona should line up against Valencia? Let us know your thoughts, predictions and teams in the comments below!