Valverde's conundrum Barcelona Griezmann could start as central striker against Betis

Ernesto Valverde is in charge of one of the most lethal teams in the world, but the truth is that the Barcelona boss will be struggling to assemble a potent attack for the visit of Real Betis this weekend.

The Blaugrana may have the likes of Antoine Griezmann, Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Ousmane Dembele in their ranks, but with the latter three all injured - Messi only returned to training with the group on Wednesday afternoon - it appears as though Griezmann could be the man in charge of scoring on Saturday night.

Regarding Messi, it seems unlikely that he will play a large part in the game as he has not had a pre-season after picking up a right calf injury on his first day back, so it is likely that a couple of backup players will be called upon, while Valverde could opt for a different system altogether.

Nevertheless, in whatever formation Valverde decides, the common factor is that Griezmann is expected to line up as a central striker. The French forward has underwhelmed when he has played in that role in pre-season, while Rafinha Alcantara could come into the side after impressing against Athletic Club. Despite the Brazilian still being linked with a move away from the Camp Nou, he came on for the injured Luis Suarez at San Mames and was arguably Barcelona's best player.

The other alternatives on the wings are Carles Perez and Sergi Roberto. The former made his Barcelona first-team debut on the last matchday of last season and stood out in pre-season, with Valverde showing his faith in the 21-year-old by bringing him on in the 76th minute against Athletic with the scores still at 0-0. Sergi Roberto, meanwhile, will play more in central midfield than right-back this season as Nelson Semedo is now the first-choice right-back, but Valverde was not impressed with the 27-year-old's contribution at San Mames.

Another of the options that Valverde has at his disposal is to give Abel Ruiz a chance as the No.9. The young striker, like Perez, was given an opportunity to impress during pre-season and showed his potential, while he also made his debut towards the end of the last campaign against Getafe in the penultimate matchday. In terms of what kind of player Ruiz is, he shares a profile similar to Luis Suarez, but it is a big ask to lead the line against a team such as Betis with such little experience. It has not been ruled out that Ruiz could depart the club on loan before the close of the transfer window, and he was not included in the matchday squad for the defeat in Bilbao.

Change of system

The Blaugrana coach could, despite the injuries, stick with a 4-3-3 system or decide to go for another formation. If Valverde is to opt for something different, a 4-4-2 or 4-3-2-1 are the most likely. But ultimately, like much of what happens with Barcelona, a lot will depend on Lionel Messi. If he is healthy, Valverde's conundrum could have a simple answer, even if it is just for the final half an hour of the clash with Betis.