Barcelona vs Athletic Club: kickoff time, form and projected lineups
Barcelona host Athletic Club at Camp Nou after a 5-0 opening win, but conflicting availability reports leave the likely XIs unclear.
By Lucas Ferreira · Science & Environment Writer
3 min read
Barcelona vs Athletic Club lineups will remain unconfirmed until shortly before Thursday's La Liga match at Camp Nou, where kickoff is scheduled for 21:00 local time (19:00 GMT). Barcelona enter after beating Elche 5-0 in their opener, while Athletic Club lost 3-1 at home to Sevilla, according to Al Jazeera.
The match offers Barcelona an early home test in their league title defence and gives Athletic a chance to respond after Yuri Berchiche's early red card shaped their defeat to Sevilla. Sports Mole forecasts a 3-0 Barcelona victory, while other betting-focused previews also tip the home side, but those assessments are opinions rather than a match result.
What time does Barcelona vs Athletic Club kick off?
The game is on August 27 at Camp Nou in Barcelona, beginning at 9pm local time and 19:00 GMT, Al Jazeera reported. Official starting teams are generally released around an hour before kickoff, according to Starting11.
Recent form
Barcelona opened their La Liga campaign with a 5-0 away win against Elche. Raphinha and Fermin Lopez each scored twice, with Karim Adeyemi also on the scoresheet, Al Jazeera reported.
Athletic lost their first league game 3-1 against Sevilla at San Mames. Berchiche was dismissed in the 11th minute, and Aitor Paredes later scored Athletic's goal after Sevilla had built a three-goal lead, according to Al Jazeera.
Barcelona also won the clubs' latest meeting, beating Athletic 1-0 away in March 2026. Lamine Yamal scored the decisive goal, Al Jazeera and Playmakerstats reported.
Who could miss Barcelona vs Athletic Club?
Availability reports conflict, so neither side's projected lineup should be treated as confirmed. Sports Mole reported that Rodri had returned to training after a minor back operation and could be in line for a Barcelona debut, while ToffeeWeb said he remained unavailable.
There is a similar difference over Gavi. Sports Mole said the midfielder's knee issue was assessed as a bruise and that he was expected to return to contention soon; Starting11 listed him as out. Sports Mole also listed Frenkie de Jong as sidelined with a knee ligament injury.
For Athletic, Berchiche was sent off against Sevilla, and Sports Mole and Starting11 both listed him as suspended. Sports Mole also reported injuries to Unai Eguiluz, Daniel Vivian and Nico Serrano, though those reports were not official team announcements.
Projected lineups are not official XIs
Sports Mole's projected Barcelona team included Joan Garcia, Pau Cubarsi, Marc Bernal, Pedri, Yamal, Raphinha and Adeyemi. Its Athletic projection included Unai Simon, Paredes, Yeray Alvarez, Oihan Sancet, Nico Williams and Gorka Guruzeta.
Other published projections differ markedly, including in Barcelona's defence and forward line. The reliable guide to who starts will be the official team sheets released before the match.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.