The game against mighty Barcelona comes at a bad time for Almeria, with the hosts having lost last three La Liga fixtures.

Meanwhile, the Catalans are desperate to make amends for back to back defeats to Real and Celta, and they will be searching for a morale-boosting win at Estadio de los Juegos Mediterraneos.

Goalless draw with Athletic Bilbao on the final day of the season saved Almeria from the drop last term, and they appear to be in for yet another difficult relegation tussle.

While struggling in home games, los Rojiblancos impressed to beat both Real Sociedad and Deportivo La Coruna on the road, but they are currently going through a very rough patch.

Almeria slipped to the danger zone by losing last three matches, scoring just one goal in the process, and they are highly unlikely to end the barren run against Barcelona.

With this being the final game ahead of the international break, the hosts will want to at least produce a promising showing against the Catalans and thus improve the poor atmosphere in the side.

Back-up keeper Julian Cuesta has returned into contention, meaning coach Francisco Javier Rodriguez will have fully fit squad to select from.

Probable starting line-up (4-2-3-1): Ruben – Ximo, Dos Santos, Trujillo, Dubarbier – Corona, Verza – Zongo, Partey, Edgar – Bifouma.

Up until a couple of weeks ago, everything was going according to plan for Barcelona, as the Catalans topped the La Liga standings and had Luis Suarez returning from suspension imminently.

They even took the lead in the El Clasico match at Santiago Bernabeu, but things soon started taking a turn for the worse.

Barcelona lost to Real Madrid after being completely outclassed by their bitter rivals before shocking home defeat to Celta Vigo saw them slip to fourth in the league standings.

The Catalans since managed to restore some of the lost confidence, having beaten Ajax in the Champions League, and they are 1.20 (1/5) favourites to beat Almeria.

Chances are that Luis Enrique will make some changes to the side that played in midweek, with Pedro, Rafinha and Pique pushing for starting places.

Meanwhile, Andres Iniesta, Jeremy Mathieu and Sergi Roberto are all unavailable for the Almeria clash through injury.

Probable starting line-up (4-3-3): Bravo – Alves, Pique, Mascherano, Alba – Rakitic, Busquets, Rafinha – Pedro, Messi, Neymar.