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2022/23 Spanish La Liga
Matchday 2
Real Sociedad v Barcelona
Reale Arena
San Sebastian, Spain
Sunday, 21 August 2022
Kick-off is at 22h00 CAT
Barcelona will look to get their
La Liga title challenge going when they take on Real Sociedad at the Reale Arena on Sunday, August 21.
Xavi's side made a stuttering start to the new season after being held to a goalless draw by Rayo Vallecano at the Camp Nou on Saturday.
Arch-rivals Real Madrid were amongst five teams to pick up a win on the opening weekend and the Blaugrana will attempt to stay in touch with the frontrunners on matchday 2.
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Xavi acknowledged their performance wasn't of the required standard and has asked the club's supporters to be patient, although he felt that Vallecano deserved credit for keeping them at bay.
"It wasn't our best game, we got to their area, but we weren't effective. It's only one point, that's insufficient. But we have to keep believing in the model, working hard," the Barca legend said.
"Rayo's defensive system was very good and their goalkeeper was excellent. We did not play well, but every player tries to give his best.
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"The humidity and heat affected us. Obviously the same goes for Rayo. We ask for the patience and confidence of the fans in this team."
The Basque Country club got off to a positive start as they beat Cadiz 1-0 at the Nuevo Mirandilla on Sunday, courtesy of Takefusa Kubo's 24th-minute winner.
However, their record against the Catalan giants makes for poor reading; La Real have been on the losing end in each of their last five league meetings and are winless in 12 outings.
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Sociedad head coach Imanol Alguacil was delighted to put three points on the board first up, although he felt they should have won by a greater margin.
"Great start to the season against a difficult opponent. When we have had that superiority, especially in the rival field, we wanted to generate more danger, and on clear occasions, hit the target," Alguacil said.
"I'm happy, but halfway because the result was fair. In the first half we lacked a little more hunger when looking for the goal because we haven't been successful and it's not always easy, but this team has more than enough quality to make the goal play on a more regular basis."
Head-to-Head (Last Five La Liga Meetings)
Matches - 5
Sociedad - 0
Barcelona - 5
Draws - 0
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