Barcella, who made his debut for France against Italy in the RBS 6 Nations back in 2008, was part of the Biarritz team which fell to a second successive loss against Racing Metro last week.

However their opponents at the Stade Aguilera, Bayonne have endured an even tougher time of things, losing their fifth match in six games so far this season against Toulouse.

But Barcella is adamant that Biarritz will not have an easy ride when the two sides meet on Saturday.

He said: “Bayonne is undergoing a difficult period, like we did last season. They are lacking in confidence. But if you look at them on paper then you worry.

“They are a good team, coached by two good coaches. We aren’t worried about them in that sense. They will bounce back even if it is difficult to get out of a run of defeats as we found last season.

“A derby is never won by 20 points, it will come down to two or three points, to small mistakes.

“It will be very tight because we have just lost two games as well.

“We don’t want to put extra pressure on ourselves but this match will be very important for the rest of the season.”