Barcelona vs Osasuna Prediction 31.01.2024

• Competition: Spain - LaLiga
• Date: Wednesday, 31st January 2024
• Kickoff: 18:00 UK / 19.00 CET
• Venue: Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys (Barcelona)

Looking for redemption for the last time out debacle, Barcelona will strive to appease their faithful supporters as they host mid-table Osasuna at their temporary home, Estadi de Montjuic, this Wednesday.

Barcelona vs Osasuna Betting Tips: Over 2.5

Engaged in the battle for silver on all four fronts at the start of the new calendar year, the Catalan club saw their hopes for three titles fade away in less than a month, and their ability to present a formidable challenge in the Champions League seems doubtful, as they must overcome Serie A champions Napoli to clinch a quarterfinal berth.

Following a mid-January drubbing of 1-4 by Real Madrid in the Supercopa de Espana final, it marked the onset of troubles for Barcelona, who were first knocked out of the Copa del Rey by Athletic Bilbao after extra time with a 2-4 defeat before practically surrendering the LaLiga title by suffering a humiliating 3-5 loss to Villarreal, further widening the gap with their arch-rivals to an insurmountable ten points.

It's clear as day that the atmosphere in the dressing room of the Catalan team is chaotic, especially since coach Xavi, succumbing to pressure from angry and frustrated fans, has announced that he will step down as coach at the end of the season, but in the meantime, he will have to take extra steps to he wouldn't get his team into even deeper trouble.

With the domestic title defense slipping through their fingers, trailing Girona by 11 points at the summit of LaLiga, and facing the imminent risk of losing their top-four standing, with fifth-placed Athletic Bilbao breathing down their necks, the blue and red side will go all out for maximum points in the midweek fixture.

Grabbing all of the three-point spoils seems the most likely scenario for the struggling Catalan giants, with Osasuna proving easy prey, bearing in mind that Barca have won all but one of their last eight head-to-head matches, two of which came this campaign, including a comfortable 2-0 win in the Supercopa semi-finals earlier in January.

With Xavi's side in action, however, we might witness another lively and dynamic contest, as Barcelona's rearguard is malfunctioning, evident in the fact that they've pulled the ball out of their own net a concerning 16 times during the last five competitive affairs, letting in a minimum of four goals on three occasions in the process.

The Pamplona squad will sense an opportunity to deepen the crisis for their seasonal tormentors and seek revenge for the two inflicted defeats, as they travel to Catalonia after opening 2024 in splendid fashion, claiming back-to-back home triumphs against Almeria and Getafe, while earning a vital point in a 1-1 draw against Sevilla on Sunday.

Facing a Barcelona side conceding goals in abundance, Osasuna will, at the very least, fancy their chances of getting on the scoresheet after improving their attacking productivity lately, finding the back of the net in 10 straight league matches. Despite the hardships they are going through, we believe that the angry Barcelona will mount a strong response to consecutive humiliations with three much-needed points in an open showdown.