Barcelona can’t be such favorite here.

Valencia is in bad form, winless in the last 5 games with some bad performances (2:1 vs Alaves) and other good games (1:1 vs Sevilla). But I believe they were a bit distracted with the Cup semifinals, so now they have no excuses. At home they need to show a reaction to the fans as the club has big ambitions.

At home they aren’t an easy team to beat, only 2 defeats so far (same as Barcelona, Atletico Madrid) which were against Real Madrid (1:2 playing so good) and unluckily vs Espanyol (1:2 conceding goals at 83’ from penalty and 89’, both after a red card to Valencia).

In the previous game against Alaves past weekend they made some rotations due to the Cup fatigue, but for this match coach Bordalas will put the best lineup, especially thanks to the very few absences he has (goalkeeper and RB, both with good replacements).

On the other hand, Barcelona is improving a bit with Xavi, but they have the same problem: a very weak defense and lack of goal. They need a lot to score goals while for rivals it is very easy to score goals.

Furthermore, for this match will miss several players: Pique (starter), Alves (starter) and reserves/rotation players Depay, Lenglet, Sergi Roberto and the long term injured Ansu Fati.

Pique is a key player for this match, as he is the best defender to break a high pressure and his replacement (Eric Garcia) is totally out of form and without confidence, making huge mistakes in every match he is playing this season.

The plan for this match will be a high pressure by Valencia, as it’s where Barcelona has his weak point. Barcelona needs the ball and possession to control the games, and where they feel better against teams who don't make a high pressure. That’s how they achieved their few victories so far in the last 14 games, all against weak teams (Mallorca, Elche, Alaves, amateur side Linares in the Cup) and Atletico Madrid.

Historically, Valencia at home always showed a very good face and performance against the top teams (Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid…). They play with huge motivation and big support from fans. Definitely they have enough quality to at least avoid a defeat here.

巴塞罗那可能不是取胜的热门。

瓦伦西亚状态不佳，在过去的 5 场比赛中没有获胜，1:2 对阵阿拉维斯，1:1 对阵塞维利亚。但我相信他们对杯赛半决赛有点分心，所以现在他们没有借口了。在主场，他们需要对球迷做出反应，因为俱乐部有远大的抱负。

在主场，他们不是一支容易被击败的球队，到目前为止只有 2 场失利（与巴塞罗那、马德里竞技相同），分别是对阵皇家马德里（1:2 表现出色）和西班牙人（1:2 失球，83分钟'失球，还有一个来自89分钟的点球，都是在向瓦伦西亚出示红牌后。

在上周末对阵阿拉维斯的比赛中，由于杯赛疲劳，他们进行了一些轮换，但本场比赛主教练博尔达拉斯将派出最佳阵容，特别是由于他们受伤的球员很少（守门员和RB，都有很好的替补）。

另一方面，巴萨在哈维的帮助下有了一些进步，但他们也有同样的问题：防守非常薄弱。他们需要更多进球才能取胜，而对于对手来说，进球很容易。

此外，本场比赛将缺席几名球员：皮克（首发）、阿尔维斯（首发）和替补/轮换球员德佩、朗格莱、塞尔吉罗伯托和长期受伤的安苏法蒂。

皮克是这场比赛的关键球员，因为他是打破高压的最佳球员，而他的替补（埃里克加西亚）完全失去了状态并且没有信心，在他本赛季的每场比赛中都犯了巨大的错误。

这场比赛的计划将是瓦伦西亚施加压力，这是巴塞罗那的弱点。巴塞罗那需要控球来控制比赛，并且在面对压力不高的球队时他们会感觉更好。这就是他们在过去 14 场比赛中极少取得的胜利的原因，全部都是对阵弱队（马洛卡、埃尔切、阿拉维斯、杯赛中的业余球队利纳雷斯）和马德里竞技。

从历史记录上看，巴伦西亚在与顶级球队总是有出色（巴塞罗那，皇家马德里，马德里竞技......）的表现。他们带着巨大的动力和球迷的大力支持比赛。绝对有实力至少可以避免输球。