Okay so yesterday I really wanted to catch the Athletic Bilbao vs Barcelona game, but my stupid cable package didn’t include the channel. Total nightmare. Anyway, figured I’d at least check the starting lineups before heading out to the sports bar.
The Hunt for Lineups Begins
Grabbed my phone first thing in the morning, opened that blue bird app everyone uses. Scrolled through sports accounts for like 15 minutes straight – nothing but fan arguments and old highlights. Kept seeing “LINEUPS SOON!!!” tweets with zero actual info. Super annoying.
Then I remembered that popular footy app. You know the one with the live scores? Loaded it up real slow for some reason. Finally found the match page – but surprise surprise! They wanted £4.99 just to see the damn team sheets. Nah mate, not paying for that.
Phone Call Hail Mary
Got desperate and rang my mate Dave who watches every Barca game religiously. Went straight to voicemail three times. When he finally picked up, he sounded half asleep: “Dunno yet bruv, Xavi might rotate” – totally useless.
Breakthrough at the Pub
Headed down to O’Reilly’s early to grab seats. The bartender had the match preview open on his tablet behind the counter. Peeked over and boom! There they were – full lineups in big bold letters. Took a screenshot immediately before he flipped the screen away.
Here’s the main takeaway:
- Barcelona went with that new kid Cubarsi in defense again
- No Pedri in starting XI – still recovering I guess
- Bilbao started both Williams brothers up front
- Robert Lewandowski playing despite knock rumors
Honestly felt like a spy mission getting this info. Remember when newspapers just printed lineups for free? Wild times. Anyway felt proper chuffed when the teams walked out exactly like I’d seen. Worth all the hassle when Gavi scored that banger!