LIVE: Xavi's first XI has a shock inclusion!
The 213th Catalan derby between Barcelona and Espanyol takes place this Saturday night (20:00 BST) at the Camp Nou in what will be Xavi Hernandez's first match in charge of the Blaugrana. The two neighbours come into this derby level on points, with Barcelona in ninth place in the table and Espanyol in 11th. Stay with us for all the build-up to Barcelona vs Espanyol and updates from the match itself.
Barcelona vs Espanyol LIVE SCORE: 0-0
This is the start of our Barcelona vs Espanyol live blog, with our updates from this highly anticipated Catalan derby following on from here. As always, the entries nearest the top are the most recent ones.
19:05 GMT: Espanyol's XI is here
Vicente Moreno has brought David Lopez into the team in place of Keidi Bare in what is the only change from Espanyol's 2-0 win against Granada just before the international break.
Espanyol's starting line-up (4-3-3): Diego Lopez; Aleix Vidal, Sergi Gomez, Leandro Cabrera, Adria Pedrosa; Sergi Darder, David Lopez, Yangel Herrera; Adri Embarba, Raul de Tomas, Javi Puado.
18:50 GMT: Xavi's first Barcelona XI
Xavi has included a surprise name in his first Barcelona XI as head coach: Ilias Akhomach.
Barcelona's starting line-up (4-3-3): Marc-Andre ter Stegen; Oscar Mingueza, Gerard Pique, Eric Garcia, Jordi Alba; Frenkie de Jong, Sergio Busquets, Nico Gonzalez; Ilias Akhomach, Memphis Depay, Gavi.
18:30 GMT: Espanyol's last win at Barcelona
Espanyol last recorded a league victory away at Barcelona back in 2009, as Ivan de la Pena's brace gave Mauricio Pochettino's side a famous 2-1 victory against Pep Guardiola's team.
18:00 GMT: Xavi back at the Camp Nou
Ahead of his first match as Barcelona head coach, Xavi has been caught on video doing some keepy-uppies on the Camp Nou pitch in a very nonchalant manner.
17:30 GMT: Barcelona vs Espanyol preview
In what will be Xavi Hernandez's first game as Barcelona head coach, the Blaugrana host Espanyol at the Camp Nou on Saturday night in the Catalan derby.
Ansu Fati, Pedri, Martin Braithwaite and Sergio Aguero are all sidelined due to injury, while Sergino Dest and Ousmane Dembele are doubtful due to knocks.
Meanwhile, new signing Dani Alves has made a surprise return to Barcelona during the international break, but he is not available for selection as he is ineligible until January.
As for Espanyol, Vicente Moreno will be without right-back Oscar Gil, who is sidelined with an injury issue, while Keidi Bare, Wu Lei and Miguelon are all injury doubts ahead of the derby.
Los Periquitos haven't grabbed a league victory at the Camp Nou since 2009, but they will try to take Barcelona by surprise as they already managed to do in their 2-1 win over Real Madrid on home soil back in October.
Barcelona vs Espanyol predicted line-ups
Barcelona's predicted line-up: Marc-Andre ter Stegen; Sergi Roberto, Ronald Araujo, Gerard Pique, Jordi Alba; Frenkie de Jong, Sergio Busquets, Gavi; Philippe Coutinho, Luuk de Jong, Memphis Depay.
Espanyol's predicted line-up: Diego Lopez; Aleix Vidal, Sergi Gomez, Leandro Cabrera, Adria Pedrosa; Manu Morlanes, Sergi Darder; Adri Embarba, Oscar Melendo, Nico Melamed; Raul de Tomas.
Barcelona vs Espanyol: When does it start?
The Saturday's match between Barcelona and Espanyol kicks off at 21:00 CET, the local time in Spain. For those living in the USA, you can tune in at 15:00 ET/12:00 PT, and for those living in the UK, you can tune in at 20:00 GMT.
Barcelona vs Espanyol: Where to watch it?
The LaLiga Santander Matchday 14 derby between Barcelona and Espanyol will take place at the Camp Nou on Saturday, November 20.
For those living in the USA, you can watch the game live on ESPN+ and for those living in the UK, the match will be broadcast live on LaLiga TV.
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