Xavi Hernández introduces three new additions to Barcelona's lineup to face Villarreal, after Wednesday's extra time at San Mamés, where the Blaugrana were eliminated from the Cup. Pedri, who played 99 minutes, and Ferran Torres, who had started, rest in the seven games of 2024, in addition to the injured Balde, who has decided to undergo surgery to suture the hamstring tendon.
Lamine Yamal remains in the eleven, repeating as a starter for the third game in a row. The youth player, 16 years old and the visible head of the new generation of 2006 and 2007, was the best Barcelona player at Villamarín and San Mamés, so Xavi wants to take advantage of that great form.
He will not be the only youth in the eleven as Héctor Fort is the one chosen to replace Balde's loss at left back. The 17-year-old defender also performed at a high level in Bilbao.
In attack, Ferran's replacement will be João Félix. In this month of January, the Portuguese had only started the two Cup matches against lower category teams, Barbastro and Unionistas. On the contrary, the forward had been on the bench at the start in the League against Las Palmas and Betis, in the Super Cup against Osasuna and Real Madrid and in the Cup against Athletic, the five First Division rivals.
The other big surprise is the entry of Oriol Romeu since the midfielder, signed from Girona, had not been a starter in the League since matchday 14 in Vallecas against Rayo. To find his last presence in the lineup at Montjuïc you have to go back to October 25.
In goal, Iñaki Peña has made his fifteenth appearance, only two less than Ter Stegen, who is already in the final stretch of his recovery. As for the players who were suffering from discomfort, Christensen is recovered and will be at the center of the defense while Cancelo, who was discharged last Tuesday, is still out of the eleven.
Barcelona starts with Iñaki Peña, Koundé, Christensen, Héctor Fort, Romeu, Gündogan, De Jong, Lamine Yamal, João Félix and Lewandowski.
