Celtic vs Barcelona – UEFA Champions League – Preview

Posted on November 22, 2016 by Sreya

Celtic vs Barcelona – Barcelona travel to Celtic Park on 23rd November, Wednesday for a Group C fixture against Celtic on Matchday 5 of the UEFA Champions League.

Barcelona lead the group standings with nine points and will be eager to bounce back from their 3-1 defeat against Manchester City in their previous game. Celtic are yet to win a game in the Champions League this season, their two points coming from scoring draws against Manchester City and Borussia Monchengladbach.

Barcelona are coming off a draw against Malaga in the La Liga this past weekend, their lack of precision in front of the goal providing Celtic with a boost of confidence but Lionel Messi has returned to training and will be expected to feature tomorrow.

Team News

Kieran Terney is injured while Kris Commons is unfit for Celtic. Leigh Griffiths has been listed as a doubt. Andres Iniesta and Samuel Umiti are sidelined through injuries for Barcelona but Jeremy Mathieu will face a late fitness test.

Celtic Possible Starting Lineup: Craig Gordon, Mikael Lustig, Dedryk Boayata, Erik Sviatchenko, Emilio Izaguirre, Stuart Armstrong, Scott Brown, James Forrest, Tomas Rogic, Scott Sinclair, Moussa Dembele.

Barcelona Possible Starting Lineup: Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, Sergi Roberto, Gerard Pique, Javier Mascherano, Jordi Alba, Ivan Rakitic, Sergio Busquets, Rafinha, Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Neymar.

Contributor’s Pick

According to Celtic vs Barcelona H2H Stats, the last five UEFA Champions League matches between these two clubs have resulted in four wins for Barcelona and a solitary loss which came back in the 2012/13 season in a meeting at the Celtic Park.

In fact, Barcelona have won seven of their last eight matches against Celtic in all competitions, scoring a minimum of three goals in their last three games. Celtic, meanwhile, have failed to win their last five matches in the UEFA Champions League.

There have been over 2.5 goals scored in six of Barcelona’s last seven games in Europe’s premiere competition and it should be a high scoring affair. Barcelona are likely to win 3-0 tomorrow.