Barcelona vs Real Sociedad Prediction 28 September 2025

📰 Barcelona fans and a significant portion of neutral supporters are outraged by the Ballon d'Or ceremony results. Ousmane Dembélé clinched the prestigious individual award, outpacing his closest rival Lamine Yamal by a staggering 321 points. Moreover, the Frenchman received five times as many votes from journalists. Raphinha, who many experts considered the frontrunner for the award, only managed to secure 5th place with 620 points, failing to receive a single vote from journalists.

🎤 After the away victory over Real Oviedo (3-1), Hansi Flick spoke to the media: "In the first half, we played well, created enough chances to score, but didn't convert them. In the second half, we continued in the same vein. The substitutions came at the right moment. I'm glad we took all three points. Frenkie and Lewandowski contributed significantly. Scoring goals is always important, and it's not easy against a team that defends well. Set-pieces are crucial in such games. We want Joan Garcia to play this way. These things can happen. He's a fantastic goalkeeper, and he showed it at the end of the match. There was a mistake, but that's football, and it's important for him to always be at the forefront defensively."

❌ The recent clash with Real Oviedo has added to the Blaugrana's injury list. Joan Garcia (knee injury) and Raphinha (thigh injury) both picked up knocks. Meanwhile, Gavi (knee injury), Fermín López (groin injury), Marc-André ter Stegen (back injury), and Alejandro Balde (hamstring injury) continue their recovery.

📰 Sergio Francisco's actions in the closing stages of the match against Mallorca (1-0) sparked widespread discussion. Five minutes before the end of regular time, the Spanish coach decided to substitute Ander Barrenetxea. The player brought onto the pitch was Umar Sadiq, who had expressed dissatisfaction with his situation at the club during the transfer window. Fans of the "royals" were outraged that Real Sociedad's head coach chose to field the Nigerian dissenter Sadiq over young academy product Jon Karrikaburu. Here's what the coach had to say about it: "Sadiq is a player who utilizes open spaces. We need to reintegrate him into the team. Today he returned to Anoeta, and I've already said that all players at my disposal will have their chance to play. I understand Karrika's frustration, but I don't see him as a third or fourth striker. We deploy players based on the situation on the field."

🎤 After their first victory of the season, Álex Remiro appeared in the press room to share his thoughts: "Everyone is pleased and happy that we won, picked up three points, and did so with a good feeling. Let this be the start of a positive run, so we can continue improving on what we’re already doing right. Keeping clean sheets used to be our hallmark. At the start of the season, we struggled with that. But now we played well defensively, everyone was strong in challenges, and we hardly allowed any quick counterattacks. Everyone is very engaged and in great spirits."

❌ In Real Sociedad's infirmary are Iñaki Ruperes (knee injury) and Orri Óskarsson (thigh injury). The participation of Aritz Elustondo and Yangel Herrera in the upcoming match remains doubtful. Meanwhile, Jon Marten has been called up to his country's youth team for the World Cup.