Villarreal vs Barcelona: TV channel, live stream, team news & preview Ernesto Valverde's men are looking to maintain their Liga lead with a win over Villarreal before a vital game against Atletico Madrid on Saturday Barcelona take on relegation-threatened Villarreal on Tuesday, and they will be hoping Lionel Messi can propel them to another three points. The Argentine superstar guided Ernesto Valverde's side to an expected victory over Espanyol at the weekend, with his brace enough to secure a 2-0 victory over their Catalan rivals . With a difficult and important encounter against Atletico Madrid coming up on Saturday, it is important Barcelona maintain their momentum here with a victory over Villarreal to remain top of La Liga. Javier Calleja's side have won four of their last five fixtures in all competitions, and a competitive match is expected between these two sides despite Villarreal's 17th position in league perhaps suggesting the opposite on paper. Game Villarreal vs Barcelona Date Tuesday, April 2 Time 8.30pm BST / 3.30pm ET Stream (US) fubo TV (7-day free trial) TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial). New users can sign up for a free seven-day trial of the live sports streaming service, which can be accessed via iOS, Android, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV as well as on a web browser. US TV channel Online stream beIN SPORTS fubo TV (7-day free trial) In the United Kingdom (UK), the game will be available on free-to-air televsion with ITV while it can also be followed online with Eleven Sports. UK TV channel Online stream ITV 4 Eleven Sports 1 Squads & Team News Position Villarreal players Goalkeepers Asenjo, Fernandez Defenders Laylun, Alvaro, Mori, Ruiz, Costa Midfielders Caseres, Fornals, Trigueros, Pedraza, Cazorla, Raba, Morlanes, Chukwueze, Fuego Forwards Gerard, Bacca, Ekambi Villarreal are without a host of players, including Bruno Soriano, Manu Trigueros and Miguelon, as well as Gerard Moreno and Jaume Costa. However, they welcome back Ramiro Funes Mori, who should help add some defensive stability to a side which as struggled for clean sheets at times this season. Villarreal XI: Asenjo, Mario, Víctor Ruiz, Alvaro, Funes Mori, Cazorla, Iborra, Morlanes, Pedraza;,Toko Ekambi, Chukwueze Position Barcelona players Goalkeepers Ter Stegen, Pena Defenders Semedo, Pique, Lenglet, Jordi Alba, Miranda, Chumi, Murillo, Todibo Midfielders Rakitic, Busquets, Coutinho, Vidal, Alena, Boateng, Arthur Forwards Messi, Dembele, Malcom, Suarez There have been no new fitness concerns for the league leaders since their victory over Espanyol, so a similar line-up is to be expected from the one that beat Espanyol. Ousmane Dembele remains the notable absentees from Ernesto Valverde's squad, while Lionel Messi also does not start. Barcelona XI: Ter Stegen, Roberto, Lenglet, Umtiti, Alba, Vidal, Busquets, Arthur, Malcom, Suarez, Coutinho Betting & Match Odds Barcelona are the odds-on favourites at 8/13 with bet365 . Villarreal are at 17/4 while a draw is priced at 16/5. Click here to see more offers for the game, including goalscoring markets, correct score predictions and more . Match Preview Lionel Messi will undoubtedly be attracting all the attention again at the Estadio de la Ceramica as he looks to continue his superb goal-scoring form for his club. His brace last time out against Espanyol pushed his tally up to eight goals in his last four starts for the Catalan club, while he also assisted three more in those games. He is in a superb run of form that has even called on the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis, to insist he's not actually "God" . “It's expressions that people use," he said. "This is a god with the ball on the pitch. It's a popular way that people have of expressing themselves. “Of course, it is a joy [to watch Messi play]. But he is not God.” Villarreal, meanwhile, are looking at the possibility of relegation this season with just a point separating themselves between Celta Vigo in the bottom three. Javi Calleja's side suffered a devastating defeat to Celta on Saturday to reduce the gap between the two sides, so a victory over the league leaders would be huge result. Villarreal are still hindered by injuries, but the return of Ramiro Funes Mori from suspension should help shore up the defence in their quest to stop a thriving Barcelona attack. Article continues below And Calleja, who will be taking charge of his 13th game on Tuesday since his return in January, is hoping his team display their true capabilities straight from the kick off. "We have to be brave, if we play with fear, we will regret it," Calleja said. "If we are afraid, they will be more comfortable, and if they are comfortable, it will be very complicated. :We have to put pressure on them, bother them and manage the ball well. Try to make them uncomfortable and not get the best version. "<doc-sep>Date : Tuesday, April 2nd Time : 3:30 PM ET Venue : Estadio de la Cerámica , Villarreal, Spain TV Channel : beIN SPORTS Streaming : fuboTV ( watch for free ) Match Preview: Barça picked up a big win at the weekend against Espanyol that kept their advantage over Atlético, and over the next eight days, they face a massive stretch of games: first it’s Villarreal on the road, then Atlético at home and Manchester United in the Champions League. Because they have such giant games after this one, it won’t be surprising if Barcelona doesn’t take this Villarreal game that seriously and suffer a lot against a relegation candidate. But the fact Villarreal is fighting against relegation doesn’t mean they’re bad: there’s a lot of talent in this team, and they’re always really good at home against the big teams. Barça always has a tough time whenever they play away to Villarreal, so this will most definitely be a very difficult night for the leaders. If they do win, however, they’ll get even closer to a second straight championship. We recommend interesting sports viewing and streaming opportunities. If you sign up to a service by clicking one of the links, we may earn a referral fee.<doc-sep>La Liga leaders Barcelona will travel south on Tuesday for a matchup against Villarreal in Matchday 30. Barcelona enters on a six-game winning streak in league play and a record of 21-6-2 with 69 points. The club is currently 10 points above Atletico Madrid for first place. Meanwhile, Villarreal may be in the Europa League quarterfinals, but they are in the thick of the relegation battle in Spain. The Yellow Submarine sits in 17th place at 6-11-12 with 29 points and fresh off a tough loss at Celta Vigo. Here's how you can watch the match and what to know: La Liga: Villarreal vs. Barcelona Date : Tuesday, April 2 : Tuesday, April 2 Time : 3:30 p.m. ET : 3:30 p.m. ET Location : Estadio de la Ceramica -- Villarreal, Spain : Estadio de la Ceramica -- Villarreal, Spain TV channel : beIN Sports : beIN Sports Streaming: fuboTV (Try for free) fuboTV (Try for free) Odds: Barcelona -145 / Villarreal +375 / Draw +295 Storylines Villarreal: This team blew quite the chance this past weekend. Taking on their prime competition for survival in Celta Vigo, Villarreal blew a 2-0 lead and lost 3-2. A win would have put them seven points clear in the race to stay in the top flight, but the loss now leaves them just a point up ahead of a tough stretch. Barcelona: Lionel Messi and company are closing in on the title. Up 10 points, there's a chance they clinch the title in April if things go their way. With a game against second-place Atletico Madrid coming at the weekend, a win there will likely wrap up the title. Messi has 31 league goals so far this season. Villarreal vs. Barcelona prediction Luis Suarez adds to his tally with two goals, Barca earns a clean sheet and puts itself steps closer to taking home the league crown. Pick: Barcelona (-145)<doc-sep>
Villarreal CF (17th, 29pts) vs FC Barcelona (1st, 69pts)* *Points and positions at the time of writing on Monday Competition/Round: 2018-19 La Liga, Matchday 30 Barcelona Outs & Doubts: Ousmane Dembélé, Jasper Cillessen, Rafinha, Jean-Clair Todibo, Jeison Murillo (out) Villarreal Outs & Doubts: Bruno Soriano, Manu Trigueros, Miguelón, Javi Fuego (out), Gerard Moreno, Jaume Costa (doubt) Date/Time: Tuesday, April 2nd, 2019, 9.30pm CET (Barcelona), 8.30pm BST/WAT (UK & Nigeria), 3.30pm ET, 12.30pm PT (USA), 1am IST (India, Wednesday) Venue: Estadio de la Cerámica, Villareal, Spain Referee: Alejandro José Hernández Hernández (OH BOY BOY) How to watch on TV: beIN SPORTS (USA & Canada), Eleven Sports 1, ITV 4 (UK), SuperSport 7 (Nigeria), Movistar Partidazo (Spain), others How to stream: beIN SPORTS CONNECT (USA & Canada), ITV Hub (UK), Movistar+ (Spain), others Following a tough victory in the Catalan Derby against Espanyol at the weekend, Barcelona are back in action with what promises to be a tough game on the road when they face Villarreal at what will always be El Madrigal. I don’t care if the pottery mafia runs the city and sponsors the stadium now, the Villarreal stadium is El Madrigal for the rest of time. Now that we’ve established the most important thing about Tuesday’s game, let’s talk football: Villarreal are just one point above the relegation zone and are in real danger of going down, which is still hard to understand when you look at how good their squad is. They just haven’t been able to play well all season long apart from a nice run in the Europa League, and they’ve definitely reached desperation mode right now. They need something against Barça, and the good news for them is they’ve always made things tough for Barça at the Madrigal regardless of the table. The atmosphere is different, the players try a little harder and this time they could earn real momentum by getting a point (or three) against the virtual champions. They’re talented enough to do it, and El Madrigal has always been tough for Barça. Do not look at the table for this one: Villarreal have good players and their good players always become better against Barça. This will be extremely difficult, and Barça may have their eye at the bigger games against Atlético Madrid and Manchester United coming in the next seven days, which may reflect on Ernesto Valverde’s team selection that might send Lionel Messi to the bench. If you’re a Barça fan, I’m sure you agree: this one screams Trap Game. Really loud. POSSIBLE LINEUPS Barcelona (4-3-3): Ter Stegen; Semedo, Piqué, Umtiti, Roberto; Vidal, Busquets, Arthur; Malcom, Suárez, Coutinho Villarreal (3-5-2): Asenjo; Álvaro, Funes Mori, Ruiz; Mario, Iborra, Cáseres, Cazorla, Pedraza; Ekambi, Bacca PREDICTION I’m really not very optimistic for this one. The Atlético and United games are much bigger and this team loves to pick its spots, plus a point at the Madrigal is never bad: 2-2 draw.