(Football news) Barcelona is playing its first midweek match since Xavi said he would be quitting as head coach at the end of the campaign. After coming under fire for an uneven season—which has been emphasized by Barcelona’s previous five performances—Xavi declared his intention to go in the summer.

Following their humiliating 4-1 loss to rivals Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup final, the Blaugrana bounced back with victories away from Unionistas and Real Betis. However, they were brought to a halt on Wednesday when they lost 4-2 in overtime in their Copa del Rey match against Athletic Club.

Following their quarter-final exit from the cup, Barcelona looked set to respond with a win when they fought back from two goals down to establish a 3-2 lead over Villarreal thanks to strikes from Ilkay Gundogan and Pedri as well as an Eric Bailly own goal.

Unfortunately for Barcelona and Xavi, the Yellow Submarine staged a dramatic comeback to score three late goals and condemn the reigning La Liga champions to a 5-3 loss, which leaves them in fourth place and 11 points adrift of leaders Girona.

Although Xavi’s decision has provided some clarity about his future, he will still be under pressure to spark an upturn in fortunes, especially with Athletic Club sitting just two points behind them in fifth position.

The Blaugrana will have the chance to extend that gap to five points on Wednesday, and they will certainly fancy their chances of beating Osasuna, having won each of their last six head-to-head meetings, including a 2-0 win in the Spanish Super Cup semi-final

Osasuna have taken four points from their last two games after returning to league action following defeats to Barcelona and Real Sociedad in the Super Cup and Copa del Rey respectively.

Juan Areso scored an 80th-minute winner to guide his team to a 3-2 win over Getafe, before Ante Budimir netted a second-half equaliser to ensure Sunday’s away clash with Sevilla finished in a 1-1 draw.

Having won seven, drawn five and lost nine of their 21 La Liga matches, Osasuna are currently sitting in 12th place in the standings, knowing that a win on Wednesday would move them into the top half of the table.

While claiming three points may prove difficult, Los Rojillos will at least fancy their chances of avoiding defeat after losing just one of their last seven league matches (W3, D3).

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