Olot vs Barcelona

Camp Municipal d’Olot is the venue as Tercera Division outfit Olot and La Liga heavyweights Barcelona go head-to-head in a pre-season friendly.

Olot head into their first meeting with the Catalan powerhouse since 1980 in high spirits after coming out victorious in their Tercera Division playoff final against Tenerife B in their final 2021/22 fixture. Manix Mandiola’s side exceeded expectations down the tail-end of last season, racking up a stellar seven-game unbeaten streak (W5, D2). Mandiola’s men have developed a habit of keeping their matches tight and competitive, as their last 11 outings have featured a full-time margin of under 1.5 goals. Connoisseurs of action-packed football won’t choose the La Garrotxa club as their favourite pick, as five of Olot’s last seven matches have contained two goals or fewer.

On the other hand, after experiencing their first trophyless season in a while, Barcelona will have a point to prove this summer. New additions Andreas Christensen and Franck Kessie could have an opportunity to wear the ‘Blaugrana’ jersey for the first time. But more importantly, Ousmane Dembele, who scored in Barca’s opening pre-season friendly against A-League All-Stars, is on the verge of penning a new contract at Camp Nou. Xavi’s prime task ahead of his team’s trip to Olot will be to address Barcelona’s defensive woes that have seen them concede precisely twice in their last two outings. On the bright side, the Catalans haven’t lost a single fixture outside Camp Nou in 2022 (W12, D5 – 90mins only).