Football is back in Spain after a time closed for vacation. The renewed FC Barcelona will seek to start the new LaLiga season on the right foot against Rayo Vallecano. Andoni Iraola's men have just completed a formidable year. They were one of the revelation teams in the first round and that allowed them not to suffer at the end to save themselves. In addition, they reached the semifinals of the Copa del Rey. Barça, for its part, arrives with the obligation to justify its powerful economic investment on the pitch.
The season will be opened by Osasuna and Sevilla on Friday, but the first main course of the year will be the one starring the Barça team and the red-and-red team in the last shift on Saturday, August 13, at 9:00 p.m. The match can be seen live on DAZN LaLiga and minute by minute can be followed on the La Vanguardia website.
Xavi will have a challenge to make his first official eleven of the year. Following the signings of Jules Koundé, Andreas Christensen, Franck Kessié, Pablo Torre, Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski, the Terrassa coach has a range of possibilities at his disposal that was inconceivable last season. All of them have gelled well in their first contacts in preseason and show they are ready to take over the starting role if Xavi considers it so.
In preseason, no defeat. Four wins and two draws, eighteen goals for and only three against. Spectacular figures, accompanied by the level of play. In addition to defensive solidity, Barça's midfielders and attackers demonstrated their rapport, weaving plays and scoring beautifully crafted goals. The new ones are adapting perfectly to what Xavi wants from them. Lewandowski already scores, Raphinha shines and Kessié and Christensen prove to be reliable. As if that were not enough, those who were already there have raised the level even more. Dembélé has been stellar on the tour of the United States and Pedri has also been one of the most prominent names.
In front will be Rayo Vallecano, a team that last season managed to beat them by the minimum both in Vallecas and in the Camp Nou. Courageous like few others, Iraola's team raised two perfect games and penalized the defensive errors of a softer Barça at the back. The people from Madrid have incorporated, among others, Florian Lejeune, Diego López, Unai López and Salvi. In preseason they were only defeated against Freiburg (3-0). They then beat Sheffield Wednesday and Leganés and drew with Birmingham City, Manchester United and Valladolid.
"We are aware that the first stage is complicated. The best will play on Saturday," Iraola acknowledged on Radio Marca. He believes that "Lewandowski is the most differential player they have signed." Despite the difficulty, he faces a new season with joy. "What is special about El Rayo is that it is different, the pride of belonging to this neighborhood," he considers. Regarding the possible arrival of Diego Costa, with whom the club already had an agreement that seems to have stopped, Iraola trusts "that the best possible decision will be made". "I don't know what will happen. At the moment we have Falcao and Camello," he said.
