Traditional Spanish and European heavyweights Barcelona will be hoping to take a giant step towards the quarter-finals of the Europa League when they host Galatasaray at the Camp Nou on Thursday for the first leg of this round-of-16 tie at 21:00 GMT.

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Can Barcelona Make a Giant Step Toward the Quarter-Final on Thursday Ahead of the Second Leg in Turkey Next Week?

After dispatching Napoli in the round-of32, with an emphatic 5-3 scoreline, Barcelona’s attentions turn to the Turkish outfit on Thursday – Galatasaray – as they seek to progress to the quarter-final stage.
In their Champions League campaign this season, Barcelona played six matches; they won twice, drew once, and lost thrice. They scored a paltry two goals while conceding nine in the process.
Goalkeeper Fatih Ozturk is facing vestibular disorder, which will prevent the 35-year-old from taking part in the clash with Barcelona on Thursday at Camp Nou. 

Can Galatasaray Cause a Major Upset at the Camp Nou on Thursday?

This unbeaten run was achieved via seven goals scored and three goals conceded. Galatasaray also maintained an average possession statistic of 44.34 percent, while keeping four clean sheets.
This display run of form underscores why they dropped down to the Europa League at the round-of-32 stage.
Barcelona will win this match ahead of the second leg next week.

Form Guide

Barcelona

Expect Barcelona to take control of the tie through possession and territorial dominance. Galatasaray will play pragmatically to try and contain Barcelona.
Galatasaray will miss the services of the experienced Arda Turna. The 35-year-old suffered a groin strain on March 3rd, 2022, and thus is highly unlikely to be involved in the match against Barcelona.
Galatasaray are marooned in 12th on the Super Lig table with 35 points after 28 rounds of fixtures of the league. This shows that they are not having a good season. This means that they are 32 points behind league leaders Trabzonspor. 
Xavi’s men will be looking to make an early statement of intent against Galatasaray at the Camp Nou, to ensure that they are in good stead ahead of next week’s second leg in Turkey. 

Galatasaray

Centre-back Samuel Umtiti (fractured toe), left winger Ansu Fati (hamstring injury), and left-back Alex Balde (ankle injury), are all doubts for the clash with Galatasaray at the Camp Nou.
Their two matches in the round-of-13 have seen Barcelona grab a draw and a win in the two legs against Serie A title contenders Napoli. In this fixture, Barcelona scored 5 goals while conceding 3. 
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Team News

Barcelona

Galatasaray have played six matches in their Europa League campaign. In this run, they have won three and drawn three, losing none.
Pena Sotorres; P. van Aanholt, Marcao, V. Nelsson, S. Boey; E. Pulgar, B. Kutlu; M. Akturkoglu, A. Cicaldau, E. Kilinc; B. Gomis

Galatasaray

The striker offers a robust presence upfront given his physicality. He also possesses pace, finishing, and leading the line with support from wide areas. He will be crucial in the Barcelona clash.
Xavi will be without Sergi Roberto, who is a long-term absentee with a hamstring injury. 

Possible Starting Lineups

Barcelona

Domènec Torrent’s side will focus on putting their horrible season behind them when they face Barcelona on Thursday. This means that they will look to perform at their highest when they face Barcelona. 

Galatasaray

Having won three consecutive matches in La Liga, and risen to 3rd on the table, Barcelona will be looking to leverage the fine domestic form in winning matches in the Europa League this season, starting with Galatasaray. 

Players to Watch

P. Aubameyang

The former Arsenal striker has taken to life at the Camp Nou and is performing impressively. He will be crucial for Barcelona when they face Galatasaray, especially when it comes to goal-scoring and creating chances.

B. Gomis

Since ways goals have been removed from all UEFA knock-out matches; this means that Domènec Torrent will have to come up with the perfect game plan to minimize the threat posed by Barcelona while optimizing the transition and counter-tactics. 

Prediction

This run of form shows Galatasaray are good at shutting out teams and being clinical in their attacks.
Ter Stegen; J. Alba, G. Pique, R. Araujo, D. Alves; F. de Jong, S. Busquets, pedri; Gavi, P. Aubameyang, O. Dembele
Barcelona maintained an average possession level of 55.84 percent, while they kept three clean sheets in the process.
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