Villarreal CF will face Barcelona on Sunday 22 November at 14:00 at the Camp Nou, following LaLiga's official confirmation for matchday 13. The Spanish football governing body released the detailed schedule on Thursday, setting the time for the key fixture.
"El Barcelona-Villarreal corresponding to matchday 13 of the league championship will be played next Sunday, 22 November, at 14.00 hours," LaLiga said. The decision accommodates the European commitments of both clubs, who play in the Champions League on Wednesday 25.
Villarreal will travel to Prague to face Slavia that Wednesday, while Barcelona will go to Baku to play Sabah. Consequently, their league matches were scheduled for Sunday. Other teams with European fixtures on Tuesday 24, such as Real Madrid and Betis, moved their games to Saturday.
LaLiga's matchday 13 begins on Friday 20 November with Athletic Club-Espanyol at San Mamés and ends on Monday 23 with Levante-Elche at the Ciutat de València. The full schedule includes Alavés-Deportivo on Saturday at 14:00, Rayo Vallecano-Valencia at 16:15, the Seville derby at 18:30 and Real Madrid-Celta at 21:00.
For Villarreal, the clash at the Camp Nou comes during a period of inconsistency in the domestic competition. The Yellow Submarine currently sits 12th in the standings with 9 points, from 2 wins, 3 draws and 4 losses in the first 9 matchdays. Their recent form is a concern, with just one win in their last five league games. Also, their defense has shown vulnerabilities, conceding at least two goals in each of their last four LaLiga matches, for a total of 11 goals against in that period. They are 18 points behind the leaders, who happen to be Barcelona.
The team arrives from a tough 4-3 defeat against Liverpool in the Champions League this past Tuesday, a match where Georges Mikautadze, Sergi Cardona and Tani Oluwaseyi scored for the Spaniards. Their immediate next fixture is a trip to Mestalla to face Valencia, who are bottom of the table, this Saturday 24 October. The last meeting between the two, in February, ended in a 2-1 Villarreal victory. This match against 19th-placed Valencia comes before the Barcelona fixture. For their season's goal tally, Villarreal have scored 13 goals and conceded 13, leaving them with a goal difference of zero. Their form across the last five matches in all competitions reads two wins, one draw and two losses, including the goalless draw against Elche on Saturday 17 October and the 3-1 victory over Napoli on Tuesday 13 October.
Background and full detail: Marca - Primera
