The Catalan giants will have a mountain to climb when they welcome their league opponents Levante to the Camp Nou on Sunday evening. It's not getting any easier for Setien and the defending champions, as their rivals Real Madrid seem to have rejuvenated so quick under Zidane, thus, overtaking Barcelona on the table. Los Balncos recorded a 1-0 victory over Diego Simeone's side yesterday at the Bernabue to go six points clear from 22 games. They are currently sitting top of laliga table with 49 points, giving the arch rivals who have 43 points half a dozen space. We've seen Madrid suffer a huge setback few months ago and many doubted the possibility of the Frenchman bringing back life to the squad, at least enough to challenge Barcelona. However, Zidane have proved that he is a specialist at what he those and the embattled catalan side will be surprised on how Madrid have rejuvenated so fast. Setien knows he needs to secure nothing less than a victory against Levante to keep their dream of Lifting the title alive, and most importantly boost their confidence ahead of their Champions league outings. Dropping points on Sunday is the least thing on Barca's agenda if their of lifting a treble is still at sight. Levante is coming into this game as a wounded lion, having lost their previous three outings across all competitions. There is always no better way of pacifying the fans than beating Barcelona and a win for them at the dreaded camp Nou on Sunday can right their previous wrongs.
Levante are currently sitting on the 13th position after 21 games. They have only won 8 league games so far this season, settled for 2 draws and have suffered 11 defeats already. However, it's not too late for them to relaunch their pursuit of a European spot, maybe the Europa and securing a win over Barcelona could be a morale booster to that quest. On the other end is a confident Barca side who are coming off their stellar 5-0 win against Leganes in their previous game. Setien who is still trying to perfect his tactics with his new squad haven't done bad so far apart from the disappointing 2-0 loss to Valencia not too long ago. In their previous 5 games against Levante, Barcelona have secured 3 wins and suffered two defeats, though those two losses were recorded at Levante's home. It also goes to show that if the defending Champions underrate their opponents on sunday, they may be taken aback by the sting of Levante. A team with a Lionel Messi will always have less to worry about, especially at the Camp Noise where he rarely fails to sprinkle his magic wand. The Argentine has remained the Squad's backbone and Setien will be hoping his talisman come through when they take on Levante on Sunday. Messi is currently on 14 goals in the league, just one ahead of Madrid's Benzema, and he will be looking forward to extending that against Levante in no distant time.
My Prediction: BARCELONA 3-1 LEVANTE
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