MADRID, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- League leader FC Barcelona plays at home to Mallorca in the 23rd round of La Liga this weekend while Real Madrid has a difficult visit to Valencia and Atletico Madrid is at home to Betis.
Barcelona qualified for the semifinal for the Copa del Rey on Tuesday night and the La Liga leader is in action on Saturday afternoon at home to a Mallorca side that is just above the bottom three.
Barcelona is still without the injured Pedri, Gavi and Andreas Christensen, while Raphinha is a doubt with a groin injury and Hansi Flick's side will have to be wary of Mallorca's 15-goal striker Vedat Muriqi, who is a constant threat in the air and will look to bring former Barcelona B-team player Jan Virgili into the action.
Mallorca travels to the Camp Nou after a morale-boosting 4-1 win at home to Sevilla on Monday in which Muriqi showed just how dangerous he is.
If Barcelona beats Mallorca, it will put the pressure on Real Madrid ahead of Sunday's visit to Valencia.
Alvaro Arbeloa's side has enjoyed the rare luxury of a week to prepare as it was beaten by second-division club Albacete 3-2 in the round of 16 at the Copa del Rey, and that should help recover some tired legs.
Valencia lost 2-1 at home to Athletic Bilbao in the quarterfinal of the Copa del Rey on Wednesday and is another side in the relegation battle, although Mestalla is traditionally one of the most hostile grounds for Real Madrid to visit.
Third place Atletico Madrid is at home to fifth place Betis on Sunday - just three days after the teams play their Copa del Rey quarter-final in Seville. Betis has lost Giovani Lo Celso with a muscle injury, while Ademola Lookman could be in line for a home debut for Atletico.
Fourth place Villarreal faces sixth place Espanyol on Monday in a game between two teams in a crisis of results. Villarreal has suffered two defeats and a draw in its last three games, while Espanyol hasn't won in 2026 with four defeats and a draw.
The round of matches starts on Friday night when Celta Vigo is at home to an improving Osasuna looking for its second away win of the campaign before there is drama in Rayo Vallecano's Vallecas Stadium on Saturday lunchtime.
Last weekend's results saw Rayo slip into the bottom three and Inigo Perez's team hosts bottom of the table Oviedo, that last week ended a 14-game unbeaten run with a battling 1-0 win over Girona.
Girona lost goalkeeper Marc Andre ter Stegen to a hamstring injury in that game so Paulo Gazzaniga returns for the visit to a Sevilla side reeling after its thrashing in Mallorca.
Real Sociedad qualified for the semifinals of the Copa del Rey on Wednesday as the improvement under Pellegrino Matarazzo continues and the side is favorite at home to Elche.
Alaves faces Getafe in a battle between direct rivals to avoid relegation before Athletic Bilbao entertains Levante.
Levante is second from bottom but has improved under Luis Castro, while Athletic Bilbao goes into the weekend three points above the relegation zone, but with a huge morale boost from Wednesday's cup win in Valencia. ■
