The streak that Barcelona will seek to keep intact in its duel against UD Barbastro

The year 2025 has just begun, and very soon, FC Barcelona will return to the playing fields. Yes, on the upcoming Saturday, January 4, Hansi Flick's team will face the first challenge of the current year when they visit the Municipal de Deportes de Barbastro to compete against UD Barbastro in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey 2024-25. This match marks the debut of the culé team in this edition of the tournament in honor of His Majesty, the King.

Therefore, Barcelona will seek to start the year on the right foot, aiming to secure a victory in Barbastro. This would extend a positive streak for the Catalan team, which has gone seven consecutive years without starting the year with an adverse result.

The last time Barcelona suffered a defeat at the beginning of the year was in 2017, when on January 5, in a Copa del Rey semi-final match against Athletic Club, the Blaugrana team fell 2-1. Back then, Aritz Aduriz and Iñaki Williams were the protagonists for the Basque team, overcoming Barça, which could only narrow the scoreline with a free-kick goal from Leo Messi.

The streak that Barcelona will seek to keep intact in their match against UD Barbastro

Since that unfortunate result, Barcelona has not experienced a loss in their first match of the year. In the first match of 2018, in the Copa del Rey round of 16 held on January 4 at the Estadio de Balaídos, the Barcelona club achieved a 1-1 draw, with a goal from José Manuel Arnáiz for the culés and a goal from Pione Sisto for Celta de Vigo.

2019 - victory against Getafe CF (1-2)

In 2019, Barcelona started the year with a solid 1-2 victory at the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez against Getafe CF on January 6, in a match corresponding to matchday 18 of LaLiga 2018-19 season. In this game, Leo Messi and Luis Suárez scored for the team from the City of Barcelona, while Jaime Mata scored for the 'azulones'.

2020 - draw against RCD Espanyol (2-2)

In 2020, Barcelona played a derby against RCD Espanyol on January 4, on matchday 19 of the LaLiga 2019-20 season, ending in a 2-2 draw at the home of the 'periquitos'. David López scored first for Espanyol, but Luis Suárez and Arturo Vidal turned the score in favor of the culés. However, Lei Wu managed to equalize for the home team towards the end of the match.

2021 - victory against SD Huesca (0-1)

In 2021, Barcelona started the year with a victory on matchday 17 of LaLiga 2020-21 season, defeating SD Huesca 0-1 on January 3 as visitors, with a goal from Frenkie de Jong.

2022 - victory against RCD Mallorca (0-1)

In 2022, Barcelona started their year facing RCD Mallorca on January 2 at San Moix. This match was part of matchday 19 of the LaLiga 2021-22 season and ended with a minimal 0-1 victory for the Catalan team. The only goal of the match was scored by Luuk de Jong, who sealed the match with a powerful header.

2023 - victory against CF Intercity (3-4)

In 2023, Barcelona started the year facing CF Intercity (3-4) on January 4 in the third round of the Copa del Rey 2022-23. The match turned out to be more challenging than expected, becoming a true goal fest with a total of seven goals.

Barça scored four times through Ronald Araújo, Ousmane Dembélé, Raphinha, and Ansu Fati, while Intercity had a memorable day with Oriol Soldevila delivering a historic hat-trick against the Catalan side.

2024 - victory against UD Las Palmas (1-2)

Finally, in 2024, Barcelona started the year facing UD Las Palmas on January 4 on matchday 19 of the LaLiga 2023-24 season, securing a 1-2 victory. The Canaries opened the scoring with a goal from Munir El Haddadi, a former Barça player, but the culé team turned the score around with goals from Ferran Torres and İlkay Gündoğan.