Barcelona looks to banish Chelsea blues against Alaves in La Liga

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — After its humbling at Chelsea, Barcelona hopes it can get back to winning ways when it hosts Alaves in La Liga on Saturday.

The game will give Barcelona the chance to move ahead of leader Real Madrid in the Spanish standings, a day before Xabi Alonso’s side visits Girona.

Barcelona has taken advantage of a couple of slips by Madrid to close the gap in La Liga to one point. But Hansi Flick’s side fell apart in a 3-0 loss at Chelsea in the Champions League on Tuesday.

“We have to accept the defeat and stay positive about what comes next," Flick said.

Key matches

Flick’s focus will be on improving a defense that was picked apart in London, where it was clearly missing the leadership and smart play of Íñigo Martínez, who left for Saudi Arabia last summer.

Right back Jules Koundé conceded an own goal and central defender Ronald Araújo was sent off before halftime at Stamford Bridge.

The Alaves game will be the second for Barcelona back at a Camp Nou still undergoing renovation. Last weekend it beat Athletic Bilbao 4-0 in its first match at its stadium in more than two years.

Alaves has lost three of its last four league games, and two in a row, to sit 14th.

After Alaves, Barcelona will only get three days rest before it hosts Atletico Madrid in another Spanish league game between title hopefuls.

Madrid also has trouble in defense. It needed a hat trick from Kylian Mbappé to ensure a 4-3 win at Olympiakos in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Before that, Madrid had drawn against Elche and Rayo Vallecano in La Liga and lost 1-0 at Liverpool in Europe.

Villarreal is sticking close to the frontrunners. It is three points behind Madrid before visiting Real Sociedad on Sunday.

Players to watch

Barcelona fans will be watching Lamine Yamal, hoping he will have another strong performance after he was marked out of the Chelsea game by Marc Cucurella, a former youth player at the Camp Nou.

Mbappé aims to add to his goal tally at the relegation-threatened Girona. The France star leads La Liga with 13 and the Champions League with nine.

While Villarreal’s success is based on team play, young forward Alberto Moleiro with his four goals and two assists has emerged as one of the revelations of the league.

Out of action

Pedri González’s steady feet in Barcelona’s midfield were missing at Chelsea as he recovers from a muscle tear that has sidelined him for nearly a month.

If Pedri is back against Alaves, he could fill in a new hole left by Fermín López. Barcelona said Thursday that the midfielder will be out for two weeks due to a “small injury” in his lower right leg.

Off the field

Barcelona is due to hold presidential elections to chose a new executive board next summer, and two rival candidates have recently said they will run against incumbent Joan Laporta.

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