Barcelona vs Girona Prediction: Barca to win by a hatful

Premier Sports 1 is the place to watch the Catalan Derby on Sunday afternoon from 15:15.

Our La Liga tipster doesn't expect this to be much of a contest with the home side as short as 2/9 to win the match outright, the odds agree with him. Mark thinks Barca will score a hatful as he takes us through his Barcelona vs Girona Predictions here on Betfred Insights...

*You can check out all of the Football Odds we offer over at betfred.com

There's a Catalan derby at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys on Sunday, with Girona aiming for a repeat of their stunning victory on this ground last season. 

Míchel's side embarrassed Xavi's Barça with a 4-2 victory in December 2023, announcing themselves as genuine title candidates in the process. They also won the reverse fixture later in the season by the same margin in a historic campaign for a small Catalan club that had always previously lived well in the shadows of the mighty FC Barcelona. 

Of the players who scored for Girona against Barça last term, only Artem Dovbyk has permanently left the club, yet they no longer approach this Sunday's fixture as anything like the equals they were throughout most of last season. 

Having finished 3rd last term, just four points behind Barcelona, Girona are down in 13th heading into matchday 29 this time around, with a huge 29-point deficit on their local rivals who top La Liga. 

The difference is even more striking in terms of goals scored. Girona outscored everyone in the Spanish top flight last season with the exception of eventual champions Real Madrid, with an average of 2.24 goals per game. That figure has slipped to 1.29 this term, with the likes of Dovbyk and Savinho simply not replaced. 

Living up to their best ever season was always going to be a virtually impossible challenge, but Míchel will still be frustrated by just how far they have fallen. The fact that 38-year-old Cristhian Stuani, who has only started one league game, is their top scorer with six goals tells its own story. 

Girona fans would have been hoping that their exit from the Champions League in January and subsequent free midweeks would have aided their domestic form. However, that hasn't been the case, and they come into this game having picked up only three points from their last six games. 

Barcelona therefore, shouldn't really have too much to fear in terms of this fixture. Hansi Flick's side were convincing 4-1 winners at Montilivi earlier this term, with Lamine Yamal sinking Girona with two first-half goals to set up a comfortable victory. 

They also take great form into this one, unbeaten in all competitions in 2025, and on an eight-game winning streak in La Liga that has catapulted them from 3rd place to top spot with 10 games to play. 

Even with everything going smoothly on the pitch, there is rarely a dull week in Barcelona though, and this one has been no exception. 

The club were left furious at having to take on Osasuna on Thursday night in a rearranged game, less than 48 hours after some of their players had been involved in international matches in South America. Flick ultimately decided to completely rest Raphinha who had played for Brazil against Argentina, while Uruguay's Ronald Araújo was an unused substitute. 

Goals from Ferran Torres, Dani Olmo and Robert Lewandowski, who was only introduced off the bench, sealed a comfortable 3-0 win for Barça. However, Osasuna have lodged a complaint, alleging that their opponents fielded an ineligible player in the shape of Iñigo Martínez. 

The central defender pulled out of the Spain squad for the recent Nations League games due to an injury, and Fifa rules prohibit a player from playing for his club within five days without the permission of his national team. 

Barça have been no strangers to legal fights of late, and they'll be hoping to find a way to ensure the result stands, given how tight things are at the top of the table. 

Team News: 

Flick's side also suffered a blow on the pitch on Thursday night, with Dani Olmo picking up an injury that will rule him out for a few weeks. He joins Marc-André ter Stegen, Andreas Christensen, Marc Casadó and Marc Bernal on the sidelines, while Frenkie de Jong is also a doubt for this game. 

With a Copa del Rey semi-final second leg away to Atlético Madrid to come this Wednesday, Barça could make as many as six changes to the team that started against Osasuna. They do have Raphinha and Lewandowski to bring back in though, while Pau Cubarsí should return in defence, potentially alongside Araújo. 

As for Girona, they are short on midfield options heading into this. Donny van de Beek is suspended, while Iván Martín is sidelined with an injury. Oriol Romeu is also ineligible to play against his parent club, so we should see Arthur Melo start in the centre of the park against his old team. 

They also have problems in attack, with Abel Ruiz, Bojan Miovski and Bryan Gil all sidelined due to injuries. 

Barcelona vs Girona Odds

Barcelona are the 2/9 favourites to record a ninth straight league victory. You can back the Draw at 6/1, while Girona are available at 10/1 to record back-to-back wins on this ground. 

They do have a strong recent record in this fixture, avoiding defeat on each of their last three visits to Barcelona in La Liga. You can back Draw or Girona at 3/1 in the Double Chance market on Sunday. 

On current form though, it's hard to look past the home team. You can back Barcelona -2.00 Handicap at 6/4 if you expect them to run away with this. Barça are also available at 13/10 to win both halves, while you can back the hosts to score over 2.5 goals at 4/6. 

Their two highest scorers this season should both start, and you can back Lewandowski to score first at 11/4, while he's priced at 3/5 to score anytime. Raphinha is on offer at 21/20 to get on the scoresheet at some point in the game. 

From a visiting perspective, their attacking selection issues suggest that Stuani should feature prominently, potentially even as a starter. The veteran striker is priced at 11/4 to score anytime and 11/1 to score last, with all six of his goals in La Liga this term having come after the hour mark. 

Bet 1 - Barcelona & over 3.5 goals @ 11/10 

There's very little to like about Girona at the moment, and they just have the feel of a team that is still struggling with the burden of raised expectation levels, following their miraculous accomplishments last season. 

They've scored just once in four meetings against top-three teams this term, conceding 12 times and losing the lot. Given the hosts have plenty of quality to bring in following their Thursday night game, there's little reason to think Girona will fare any better here, and I'm backing Barcelona and Over 3.5 goals at 11/10. 

Bet 2 - Raphinha to score anytime & Robert Lewandowski to score anytime @ 2/1 

Given his international involvement with Brazil, Barça made the only logical decision and rested Raphinha entirely on Thursday night. He should be fresh and ready to go here as a result, and with 27 goals already this season in all competitions for his club, the ex-Leeds man should be one of the main threats in this game. 

The other ought to be Lewandowski who was only used off the bench for Poland on Monday against Malta, while he also came on midway through the second half against Osasuna. He looks certain to return to the starting lineup here, and the 36-year-old has scored in each of his last three league games to take his season tally to 23 in the Spanish top flight. 

Up against an unconvincing Girona side, I expect both players to get chances here and I'm using the Bet Builder to back Raphinha to score anytime and Robert Lewandowski to score anytime at 2/1.