Barcelona, the reigning La Liga champions and current leaders, host Getafe on Saturday, 10 October, in the eighth round of the season. Sports commentator and analyst Mikhail Beloborodov has assessed the contest.
Barcelona have made an outstanding start to the campaign, winning all eight of their official matches by an aggregate score of 36-8. That gives them an average of 4.5 goals per game, while they have conceded only once per match on average.
Their form has been particularly strong in the past three league fixtures. They beat Levante 4-2, followed that with a 7-2 victory over Racing and then defeated Sevilla 3-1.
Raphinha has been central to their attacking output, scoring a hat-trick in each of his past two league appearances. However, the Brazil international returned from duty with his national team carrying an injury.
Although Raphinha could potentially play with painkilling injections, Barcelona have decided not to take the risk. He is expected to miss the club’s next two official matches. Frenkie de Jong remains unavailable, but Barcelona have already adapted to playing without the Netherlands midfielder.
Getafe qualified for the UEFA Conference League last season and began their European campaign in the qualifying rounds. They overcame Partizan of Serbia 3-1 on aggregate, despite losing the second leg 2-1.
After the return match in Belgrade, Pepe Bordalas’ side went four domestic games without a win, recording two victories and two draws during that sequence. They did, however, return to winning ways in their most recent match before the three-week break in club football, beating Malaga 1-0.
The only goal of that game came in the 85th minute.
Bookmakers expect Barcelona to win comfortably, but Beloborodov believes the match could be considerably closer. He pointed to the difficulties top sides often face immediately after international fixtures, with UEFA and FIFA’s scheduling experiments placing an additional burden on players. Many national teams played four matches in the space of two weeks.
Getafe’s playing style could also make life difficult for the champions. Beloborodov described the visitors as a side that presses and battles relentlessly, restricting the space available to opponents.
During the current calendar year, Getafe have avoided heavy defeats against the leading clubs. They lost 2-0 to Barcelona and 1-0 to Atletico, while they secured a 1-0 victory over Real Madrid.
Without Raphinha, Barcelona may struggle to break down Getafe’s organised defence. Beloborodov’s view is that Yamal alone may not be enough to unlock the visitors.
