Barcelona vs Manchester City: Reason for playing mid-season friendly and other match details

The EPL and La Liga have been underway for nearly three weeks. However, Barcelona and Manchester City will be playing mid-season friendly on Wednesday. Here are the reason and other match details.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons

The football season is officially underway, as the top domestic leagues, including the English Premier League (EPL) and La Liga, have been happening for nearly three weeks. Before the season, most clubs were also engaged in pre-season activities, which involved playing matches against clubs across the globe. However, Spanish giants Barcelona and English champion Manchester City will be doing something different when they clash on Wednesday. No, it is not related to the UEFA Champions League (UCL) but is mid-season friendly, which is rare in club football. But why is it happening in the first place? Here are the reason and match details:

Image credit: Getty

Reason
The mid-season meeting is for charity, as both clubs would be looking to generate funds. The amount yielded would be used for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis research, especially after former Barcelona legendary goalkeeper Juan Carlos Unzué was diagnosed with the same. The tie would also be interesting, given two former Borussia Dortmund stars, Robert Lewandowski (Barca) and Erling Haaland (City), are clashing against each other.

Probable XI
BAR: Pena; Garcia, Pique, Alba; Kessie, Gavi; Roberto, Torres, Pjanic, Dembele; Braithwaite.
MC: Ortega; Gomez, Stones, Dias, Lewis; Palmer, Phillips, Grealish; Foden, Alvarez, Mahrez.

Match details
Date and day: August 24, 2022 (Wednesday)
Venue: Camp Nou, Barcelona
Time: 1.00 AM IST (Thursday)
Where to watch (TV): None
Where to watch (Online): CITY+ and BARCA TV+ (Subscription required)
Prediction: Teams play for fun, and a 1-1 draw is on the cards