Football

Treble-chasing Barca look to ratchet up pressure on Real

Barcelona will be aiming to open up a seven-point lead at the top of LaLiga table when they welcome Europe-chasing Celta Vigo on Saturday.

Hansi Flick's side sit four points clear of second-placed Real Madrid at the summit heading into the next gameweek, while Celta are seventh, five points behind sixth-placed Real Betis in the battle for Europe.

Barcelona have a record of 22 wins, four draws, and five defeats from their 31 league matches this season, with a total of 70 points.

The Catalan outfit have an incredible 84 league goals this term, and a victory over Celta in this contest would see them put more pressure on a struggling Real. The 15-time Champions League winners were dumped out of the competition after losing 5-1 on aggregate to Arsenal last week in the quarters and will be missing suspended Kylian Mbappe for their Sunday's game against Athletic, a team that have lost just once in their last 22 league games and beat Real 2-1 in December.

Barcelona will be looking to exact some measure of revenge when they host Celta after the reverse fixture ended 2-2. Barca were up 2-0 before Marc Casado was sent off, and the 10 men conceded two late goals to draw 2-2.

And unlike Real, Barcelona are still in the hunt for a treble in Flick's first season, with Real and Barca set to meet in a much-anticipated Clasico clash in the Copa del Rey final later this month in Seville.

"I am really satisfied with the team and the performances this season," Flick said.

"We're still in three competitions. We're in the Champions League semifinal. This is a huge success and we can be happy for that."

Barcelona were down in the dumps on Tuesday after losing for the first time in 2025 in a 3-1 Champions League quarterfinal second-leg defeat at Borussia Dortmund, and it was up to coach Flick to offer his players some perspective.

Having thrashed last year's finalists 4-0 in the first leg, Barca qualified for the semifinals with a 5-3 aggregate win and will play Inter Milan in the last four.

"The team has a lot of merit. There is still a long way to go and we are not at the end," Flick said.

"In the dressing room there was no euphoria either. I reminded them that we are in the semifinals. Then it changed a little, and they were happier."

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Treble-chasing Barca look to ratchet up pressure on Real

Barcelona will be aiming to open up a seven-point lead at the top of LaLiga table when they welcome Europe-chasing Celta Vigo on Saturday.

Hansi Flick's side sit four points clear of second-placed Real Madrid at the summit heading into the next gameweek, while Celta are seventh, five points behind sixth-placed Real Betis in the battle for Europe.

Barcelona have a record of 22 wins, four draws, and five defeats from their 31 league matches this season, with a total of 70 points.

The Catalan outfit have an incredible 84 league goals this term, and a victory over Celta in this contest would see them put more pressure on a struggling Real. The 15-time Champions League winners were dumped out of the competition after losing 5-1 on aggregate to Arsenal last week in the quarters and will be missing suspended Kylian Mbappe for their Sunday's game against Athletic, a team that have lost just once in their last 22 league games and beat Real 2-1 in December.

Barcelona will be looking to exact some measure of revenge when they host Celta after the reverse fixture ended 2-2. Barca were up 2-0 before Marc Casado was sent off, and the 10 men conceded two late goals to draw 2-2.

And unlike Real, Barcelona are still in the hunt for a treble in Flick's first season, with Real and Barca set to meet in a much-anticipated Clasico clash in the Copa del Rey final later this month in Seville.

"I am really satisfied with the team and the performances this season," Flick said.

"We're still in three competitions. We're in the Champions League semifinal. This is a huge success and we can be happy for that."

Barcelona were down in the dumps on Tuesday after losing for the first time in 2025 in a 3-1 Champions League quarterfinal second-leg defeat at Borussia Dortmund, and it was up to coach Flick to offer his players some perspective.

Having thrashed last year's finalists 4-0 in the first leg, Barca qualified for the semifinals with a 5-3 aggregate win and will play Inter Milan in the last four.

"The team has a lot of merit. There is still a long way to go and we are not at the end," Flick said.

"In the dressing room there was no euphoria either. I reminded them that we are in the semifinals. Then it changed a little, and they were happier."

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