"A win would provisionally take Barcelona four points ahead of second-placed Real Madrid, who host mid-table Getafe on Monday night. Barcelona had a mini-wobble earlier this month as they were thrashed 4-0 by Atletico Madrid in the first-leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal before losing 2-1 to Girona, allowing Madrid to briefly occupy top spot."
"Third-placed Villarreal trail Barcelona by 10 points, and their hopes of competing for the title could be rekindled with a surprise victory at Camp Nou. The visitors come into the game high on confidence after beating Valencia 2-1 in their last outing and winning three of their last four La Liga matches."
"Barcelona host Villarreal amid concerns about the form of strikers Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres. Former Bayern Munich great Lewandowski, 37, has declined rapidly this season as well as enduring some fitness issues, while Torres, 25, is on course for a personal record for goals, but most of them came in a purple patch towards the end of last year."
Barcelona hosts third-placed Villarreal at Camp Nou on Saturday in a La Liga match where a victory would provisionally give Barcelona a four-point lead over second-placed Real Madrid. Barcelona recently recovered from consecutive defeats to Atletico Madrid and Girona with a 3-0 win over Levante, while Madrid suffered a surprise loss to Osasuna. Villarreal, trailing by ten points, arrive in strong form after winning three of their last four matches and their last two away games against Barcelona. Barcelona faces concerns about striker form, with Robert Lewandowski declining this season and Ferran Torres experiencing inconsistency. Defensive vulnerabilities remain problematic as opponents exploit Barcelona's high defensive line.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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