Barcelona will move another step closer to the La Liga title if they can overcome Catalan rivals Espanyol at Camp Nou on Sunday afternoon.
Luis Enrique's side currently lead the division with two games left, but any slip would allow both Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid to take advantage as a pulsating race in Spain's top flight draws to a close.
Barcelona
© Getty ImagesIt is simple for Barcelona - win their final two league matches and they will be champions once again. They can actually win the title this weekend, but would need Atletico to lose at Levante and hope that Real Madrid drop points at home to Valencia.
All of the top three are in action on Sunday afternoon and Barcelona will enter this match off the back of three successive victories. Earlier this year, it did appear that the Catalan giants would breeze to another league success, but they have wobbled in recent months and both Atletico and Real Madrid have continued to pick up the points.
When Barcelona beat Getafe 6-0 on March 12, they managed to open up an 11-point lead over second-placed Atletico and 15 on third-placed Real Madrid. A four-game winless run, however, blew the title race wide open.
They drew at Villarreal and lost against Real Madrid, Real Sociedad and Valencia. Talk of a crisis had surrounded Camp Nou, but they got back on track with an 8-0 win at Deportivo La Coruna on April 20 and have also beaten Sporting Gijon and Real Betis in their last two.
There will be no repeat of the treble from the 2014-15 season, but Enrique's side will face Sevilla in the final of the Copa del Rey later this month and a domestic double would still be seen as a fine campaign for the Catalan giants.
Next weekend, Barcelona will travel to Granada and while it has not been pretty in recent weeks, they know that victory against Espanyol and again next Sunday would see them hold off the challenge from the capital.
There have been signs of tiredness in recent weeks and Enrique's side will have to watch rivals Atletico and Real Madrid lock horns in the Champions League final in Milan, but a 24th La Liga title is beckoning and slipping up at this stage seems unthinkable.
Recent form: LLLWWW
Recent form (all competitions): LLLWWW
Espanyol
© AFPHad Espanyol not managed to pick up three important points against Sevilla last weekend, the Catalan outfit would have been in serious trouble entering their final two matches.
As it stands, Constantin Galca's team are still not safe from the drop with two games left, but they are five points clear of the bottom three and only a serious turnaround at this stage of the campaign would see them drop into the relegation zone.
A total of 40 points has left Espanyol in 14th position, and 18 league defeats is an indication of the type of campaign that it has been for the White and Blues.
At home, they have actually won eight of their 18 matches and only lost five times, but the Catalan side have been beaten on 13 occasions away from home and will visit Camp Nou having lost on each of their last six trips to their bitter rivals.
The 1-0 success over Sevilla last weekend was Espanyol's first league victory since they overcame Athletic Bilbao on March 20, but they have a home game against Eibar next weekend and will fancy their chances of ending the season on a high.
Matches between Barcelona and Espanyol are always important due to the rivalry between the two sets of supporters, and there is no question that the visitors would accept a poor campaign if they could prevent Barcelona from lifting the title this season.
Recent form: DLLDLW
Team News
© Getty ImagesThomas Vermaelen and Jeremy Mathieu remain on the sidelines for Barcelona, but head coach Enrique has no fresh injury concerns from the win at Betis last time out.
Aleix Vidal returned to the squad last weekend, but the Spaniard is expected to remain on the bench as Enrique selects his strongest XI - including Dani Alves and Jordi Alba in the two full-back positions.
Rafinha needs match rhythm after returning from a long lay-off, but Ivan Rakitic's opening goal against Betis last Saturday should see the Croatian keep his spot in the XI.
Chilean goalkeeper Claudio Bravo is also fit to start despite limping off in the latter stages of the Betis clash.
As for Espanyol, Jose Canas made his long-awaited return against Sevilla, but the Spaniard is expected to start on the bench once again.
Victor Alvarez and Gerard Moreno are both pushing for starts after coming off the bench against Sevilla last weekend, but leading scorer Felipe Caicedo should continue in attack.
Barcelona possible starting lineup:
Bravo; Alves, Pique, Mascherano, Alba; Rakitic, Busquets, Iniesta; Neymar, Suarez, Messi
Espanyol possible starting lineup:
Pau; Correa, Alvaro, Roco, R Duarte; Asensio, Diop, O Duarte, Sanchez, Perez; Caicedo
Head To Head
Barcelona are currently on a 13-game unbeaten run against Espanyol, recording 10 victories during that period and also keeping 10 clean sheets.
What's more, Espanyol have lost on each of their last six visits to Barcelona and failed to score a single goal in the process.
The pair have actually already met three times this season. They played out a goalless draw in the reverse league match in January, but Barcelona beat their rivals 6-1 on aggregate in the last-16 stage of the Copa del Rey.
We say: Barcelona 2-0 Espanyol
Espanyol are not quite safe from relegation and will be fired up for a clash against their bitter rivals, but it is difficult to imagine Barcelona slipping up this weekend. We are not expecting a comprehensive home win, but Barcelona should come up out on top at Camp Nou.
