Barcelona vs Valencia: Hansi Flick’s side dominates recent Mestalla meetings despite historic parity

Barcelona’s next visit to Mestalla is set to carry a historic significance. If the stadium is eventually replaced or loses its role as Valencia’s home for competitive football, owing to redevelopment, this meeting could be the final chapter of one of Spanish football’s longest-running fixtures at the historic ground.

Few venues have provided such an evenly balanced setting for Barcelona. 

Simply put, the two clubs have met at Mestalla 115 times across six competitions, with Barça narrowly ahead on 43 victories to Valencia’s 42. The remaining 30 encounters ended level.

That near-perfect balance makes Mestalla one of the rare grounds where Barcelona have never enjoyed overwhelming historical dominance. 

Recent history, though, has shifted in their direction.

Barcelona have dominated the rivalry in recent years

Barcelona lost the most recent match at Mestalla. (Photo by Aitor Alcalde/Getty Images)

Since the beginning of the 2015/16 La Liga season, Barcelona have generally had the upper hand in Valencia.

Across the last 10 league meetings at Mestalla, Barça have won five times, while Valencia have taken two victories. The other three matches all finished 1-1.

The Copa del Rey has provided an even clearer indication of the changing balance.

Barcelona won 2-0 at Mestalla in the semi-finals during the 2017/18 campaign under Ernesto Valverde and seven years later, Hansi Flick’s side produced an emphatic 5-0 victory in the 2024/25 quarter-finals.

Notably, both of those Barcelona teams eventually went on to lift the Copa del Rey.

Valencia still have recent reminder of their strength

Barcelona recorded a huge win over Valencia under Hansi Flick. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

For all Barcelona’s recent superiority, Valencia know exactly how to hurt them at Mestalla, as their latest league meeting at the stadium ended in a home victory. 

The match came on the final day of last season, with Barcelona already crowned champions after securing the title against Real Madrid.

Valencia won 3-1 in May, with Robert Lewandowski scoring what proved to be his final goal for Barcelona.

That result prevented Barça from extending their recent dominance and gave Valencia an important final memory from the previous campaign.