Barcelona welcome Brazilian side Santos to Camp Nou for a preseason clash with the Joan Gamper Trophy on the line. Barca are hoping to recapture the Cup after Italian club Sampdoria walked away with it last summer.
The match also marks
Neymar's first match against his former club. The 21-year-old sensation starred with the
Peixe for five years before moving to Barcelona, where it's hoped he'll play a major part in a bright future for the Spanish club.
Although it's a preseason match with bigger fixtures on the horizon, the
Blaugrana
should have extra motivation with a trophy up for grabs. At the same
time, the search for top form continues after only securing a draw
against
Lechia Gdansk in their last game.
So Barcelona should have several objectives in mind as Santos arrive.
Let's take a glance at all the information key to the clash, followed
by a preview and prediction.
Preview
Aside from a seven-goal victory against an overmatched
Valerenga squad, it's been a sluggish start to the preseason for Barcelona. A loss to defending European champions
Bayern Munich and a draw against
Lechia Gdansk illustrate the importance of preseason matches.
The dominant Spanish squad will be keen to ramp up their preparation
efforts. With only around two weeks before the La Liga campaign gets
underway, new manager Gerardo Martino will now be putting the pieces in
place ahead of a busy season.
David Ramos/Getty Images
A major part of that process is getting the aforementioned
Neymar on the same page with Lionel
Messi.
They have extraordinary potential as an attacking duo, but it's going
to take some time for them to build the necessary chemistry to terrorize
opposing back lines.
Otherwise, most of the other main players remain in place for another season.
Xavi and Andres
Iniesta will continue to star in the midfield while
Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique provide stability at the back.
One other player to watch is Alexis Sanchez, who's been one of the
club's most impressive preseason performers. Finding a way to
incorporate him on a regular basis with both
Messi and
Neymar in place is a challenge, but he's earned the playing time.
As for Santos, a couple of players have stepped up since Neymar's departure. The most intriguing is 19-year-old forward Neilton, who's netted four goals and should only continue to improve as he gains more experience with the Brazilian club.
Another player in good form is veteran midfielder Walter Montillo. Without Neymar to create chances via terrific individual runs, Santos is forced to rely more on steady build-ups to generate offense and Montillo is a vital part of that adjustment process.
That said, Santos isn't able to match Barcelona's level of talent. And with Barca
needing to generate some momentum ahead of the new campaign, expect to
see their most complete preseason performance to date back in their
famous home on Friday.
It should be enough for them to win the Joan Gamper Trophy.
Where: Camp
Nou in Barcelona, Spain
When: Friday, Aug. 2 at 3 p.m. ET (8 p.m.
BT)