Barcelona vs Cadiz: Xavi's Men Bid to Put Europa League Heartbreak Behind Them

Barcelona vs Cadiz: Xavi's Men Bid to Put Europa League Heartbreak Behind Them

Fred Kennedy
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:00 PM
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  • Barcelona are scheduled to host Cadiz at the Camp Nou in the final round of the La Liga fixtures this weekend
  • Xavi's charges head into the encounter off a fine run of results in the league, winning seven consecutive fixtures
  • However, they recently suffered a Europa League heartbreak as they were eliminated from the competition by Frankfurt

Barcelona will be keen to put their Europa League heartbreak behind them when they take on Cadiz in the La Liga on Monday night, April 18.

The Catalan giants were eliminated from the second-tier European competition mid-last week after they suffered a 3-2 shocking loss to Eintracht Frankfurt.

Xavi Hernandez during the match between FC Barcelona and Sevilla FC at the Camp Nou Stadium. Photo by Joan Valls.
Xavi Hernandez during the match between FC Barcelona and Sevilla FC at the Camp Nou Stadium. Photo by Joan Valls.
Source: Getty Images

Having settled for a 1-1 draw in the first leg of the quarter-final tie in Germany, Barca needed a victory of at least a 1-0 scoreline to progress to the semis.

However, their 3-2 defeat at home in the return leg played at the Camp Nou saw them crash out on a 3-4 goal aggregate.

Barcelona vs Cadiz match preview

With no silverware to fight for. Barca's focus is now fully on the La Liga where they will be bidding to finish on a high.

Xavi's men are currently placed second on the standings with 60 points, 15 behind leaders, Real Madrid.

They have won seven league matches on the bounce and will be keen to make it eight when they host Cadiz.

On their part, Cadiz are currently battling relegation as they are placed 18th on the standings with 28 points.

The Yellow Submarine were excellent on their return to the top flight last term but they have found it more difficult to compete this term.

Possible starting XI

Barcelona:

Ter Stegen; Dani Alves, Lenglet, E Garcia, Alba; Frenkie de Jong, Sergi Busquets, Gavi; Dembele, Aubameyang, Ferran Torres

Cadiz:

Ledesma; Akapo, Chust, Hernandez, Espino; Alejo, Mari, Fede, Idrissi; Negredo, Perez

Barcelona dumped out of Europa League

Earlier, Sports Brief reported Barcelona were dumped out of the Europa League as Eintracht Frankfurt pulled off a shock 3-2 victory at Camp Nou to progress to the semi-finals.

After the first leg finished 1-1 in Germany last week, Barca were strong favourites to win at home against a side sitting ninth in the Bundesliga.

But Frankfurt, inspired by an incredible travelling support of around 20,000 fans, outplayed the Catalans, with Filip Kostic scoring twice.

Authors
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Fred Kennedy
Fred Kennedy has a Bachelor's degree in journalism (Daystar University), currently working as a Sports Editor. He has more than five years of experience in digital journalism.
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