Barcelona will welcome Rayo Vallecano to Estadi Olímpic Lluis Companys on Monday night knowing that a victory would see them rise above Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid to the top of the La Liga table.

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Real Madrid and Atletico were held to 1-1 draws by Osasuna and Celta Vigo respectively on Saturday, with the former at the summit on 51 points, one point clear of Diego Simeone's side in second position.

Barcelona are three points off the lead, but due to their superior head-to-head record over Real Madrid, a victory over Rayo would see Hansi Flick's side move to the top of the division with 14 games left to play.

The Catalan giants will enter this match off the back of three straight wins in all competitions, including a 4-1 success over Sevilla last weekend, while they are unbeaten since a 2-1 reverse to Atletico in their final match ahead of the winter break.

Barcelona have been full of goals in recent weeks, including nine in their last two matches, and they will have been greatly encouraged by what happened to their title rivals on Saturday, as they prepare for successive league fixtures with Rayo and Las Palmas ahead of the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final with Atletico.

Flick's side are fighting on three fronts this season, also being present in the knockout round of the Champions League, so it could be a hugely successful campaign for Blaugrana.

Rayo, meanwhile, will enter the match off the back of three straight league wins over Girona, Leganes and Real Valladolid, and Inigo Perez's side are certainly European contenders at this stage of the campaign.

Indeed, an excellent season to date has seen them win nine, draw eight and lose six of their 23 matches to collect 35 points, which has left them in sixth, three points ahead of seventh-placed Osasuna and five from Villarreal in fifth.

Los Franjirrojos were 17th in La Liga last season, while they have never finished higher than eighth at this level, so it could be a historic campaign for the club, who have the fifth-best away record in La Liga this term, claiming 17 points from their 12 games on the road.

Perez's side can also take heart from the fact that Barcelona have been beaten on three occasions at their temporary home stadium in the league this season, but the capital team have lost their last two league games against Monday's opponents, including a 2-1 defeat in the reverse game towards the start of the 2024-25 campaign.

Rayo have a recent away win over Barcelona to their name, though, triumphing 1-0 at Camp Nou in April 2022, and they actually went unbeaten in the league across five games with the Catalan side between October 2021 and November 2023, winning three times in the process.

Barcelona possible starting lineup:

Szczesny; Kounde, Cubarsi, I Martinez, Balde; Casado, Pedri; Yamal, Gavi, Raphinha; Lewandowski

Rayo Vallecano possible starting lineup:

Batalla; Ratiu, Lejeune, Mumin, Chavarria; Diaz, Ciss; De Frutos, Palazon, A Garcia; Nteka