Barcelona veteran set to start vs Las Palmas after Almeria heroics, star forward to be benched

After the brief mid-season break, Barcelona will resume their campaign when they take on Las Palmas away in the Canary Islands on Thursday, January 4.

For what will be the first game of the new year, Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez is expected to make some notable changes to the lineup, especially after the performance that the team put up against Almeria.

The Blaugrana just about managed to come away with a 3-2 victory against the bottom-feeders, with the performance being far from convincing.

Roberto set to start again

As such, given how things went down, Xavi is expected to make some big changes to the side that started against Almeria, reports Javi Miguel of AS.

However, one player who is certain to retain his place in the starting lineup, as per the report, is captain and veteran star Sergi Roberto.

The 31-year-old was the star of the show for Barça during the game against Almeria, as it was his brace that allowed the reigning La Liga champions to come away with all three points.

Given how he fared, coupled with the fact that Pedri is still injured, Roberto is thus expected to hold on to his starting lineup against Las Palmas.

Joao Felix to be axed

Meanwhile, the report states that Joao Felix is set to be benched by Xavi after the star forward’s disappointing display against UD Almeria.

The 24-year-old Atletico Madrid loanee was one of the most disappointing players for Barça in that game and was subbed off at half-time by the manager, along with Andreas Christensen.

And, given the Portuguese ace’s drop in level of performances since the win against Atletico, it is set to cost him his place in the starting XI against Las Palmas.

Taking his place, as per the report, will be Ferran Torres, who is pushing for greater involvement with his performances off the bench. He is expected to partner Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha in attack.

Meanwhile, Frenkie de Jong will return to the side after missing the last game due to suspension, while Ilkay Gundogan is also expected to start in midfield despite a minor scare during training last week.