Girona vs Barcelona Preview (Monday 23.02.2026) La Liga:
Possible starting lineups:
Girona:
Gazzaniga; Rincon, Reis, Blind, Martinez; Beltran, Martin; Tsygankov, Lemar, Gil; Vanat
Barcelona:
J. Garcia; Kounde, Cubarsi, Martin, Balde; E. Garcia, De Jong; Yamal, Olmo, Fermin; Lewandowski
Girona will welcome the leaders Barcelona in Catalan derby on Monday night. The hosts have 26 points and they are four away from the drop zone. That means they are not out of the relegation battle and every point is important. Michel's side are in solid form at the moment. They have two wins, two draws and just one defeat on the last five La Liga matches. Girona beat Osasuna and Espanyol, lost to bottom-placed Oviedo and shared the points with Getafe and Sevilla. Interesting to be mentioned, Girona play poor at home where they won just three matches from the possible 11. Michel will try to improve the record, but unfortunately the opponents are Barcelona. In addition, Michel is without a number of first-team players through injury. Juan Carlos, Donny van de Beek, Portu, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Alex Moreno and Ricard Artero all confirmed to be out, while Azzedine Ounahi is rated as doubtful with a calf injury.
Barcelona have 12 victories on the last 13 La Liga matches. Usually, the atmosphere in the squad is excellent, while the players confidence is high in such situation, but not now. The reason is high defeat from Atletico Madrid in Copa del Rey semifinals' first leg. In a thrilling match that took place at the Metropolitano Stadium, Atletico decisively triumphed over Barcelona with an impressive 4:0. The Catalans now need a miracle to eliminate the Rojiblancos. The atmosphere in the squad is far from desired, while the players confidence is questionable. Hansi Flick is under heavy pressure, although his job is safe at the moment. However, there is no space for mistake, this is a "must win" situation. Real Madrid beat Real Sociedad on Saturday and cut the difference to only one point. The injury situation is another problem for the German coach. Gavi, Andreas Christensen and Pedri remain sidelined, while Raphinha and Marcus Rashford are doubtful due to groin and knee injury respectively.
Girona vs Barcelona Prediction:
This is a "Must win" situation for Barcelona. There is no space for calculations, no space for excuses. Barcelona were humiliated in the cup, losing 4:0 to Atletico. They have only theoretical chance for the final, I can't see Diego Simeone's warriors losing with five goals at Nou Camp. Girona are in solid form, they have two wins, two draws and just one defeat on the last five La Liga matches. It is clear they won't give up without a proper fight, though I think Barcelona are closer to the victory. Girona are having issues with attack, they have scored just two goals on the last three matches. In addition, Barca will have a big fans' support. The distance between these two cities is 100 km, so lot of fans will go to Girona. I expect the "older brother" to show who is the boss in Catalonia.
Girona vs Barcelona Pick: Barcelona -1.5 AH @ 2.00 with
1xBet