The F League returns on Three Kings' Day with a derby between the two Catalan teams in the category, two teams that also share a city: Sant Joan Despí. At the Johan Cruyff, FC Barcelona welcomes Levante Las Planas (6:30 p.m.) to kick off 2024 with a very special day in which the Blaugrana club has promised surprises for all the fans who hurry to finish the family meal and head to to the cule temple to witness the first game of the year.
Giráldez gave his team a week's vacation, who returned to training on December 28, but the coach is convinced that the team is back in top shape: “There are no excuses not to face the first game of 2024 with the same team.” high competitive level that they had been giving before the holidays.”
The Blaugrana coach warns that Levante Las Planas is “a team with a lot of personality, which never hides.” Ferran Cabello's team are in a comfortable middle zone of the table, with 16 points, although they could have placed themselves beyond this eighth position if it had not been for the poor end to the year they have had. They have only added one point in their last four games and have not won since November 12.
Despite being a much more modest team than Barça, both in budget and performance, Levante Las Planas has shown a great level against the teams in the upper zone, tying against Levante (third) and resisting against Real Madrid for a good part of the game, despite ending up giving up defeat.
It has up to eight former Blaugranas in its ranks, although three of them are not available: Goalkeeper Laura Coronado, and defenders Berta Bou and Núria Garrote. For his part, Giráldez also has significant losses: Alexia Putellas, Mapi León, Fridolina Rolfö or Jana Fernàndez, in addition to Cata Coll and Irene Paredes, who advanced that she could have minutes in a call in which "some more available player will be seen." ”.
The Planense team faces its second season in the elite after achieving the desired permanence in its first season in the F League, although a decade ago they had already played in the top category. Due to the few times they have met and the great distance that separates them, the duel between Barça and Levante Las Planas has not yet earned all the honors to be considered a classic, but it is the only derby that remains after the relegation of the Espanyol to Second. Last year, the Blaugrana won both matches by a landslide (7-0 and 0-4).
