Defending champions Barcelona will have a chance to trim fierce rivals Real Madrid’s lead at the top of the La Liga to three points when the Catalans come calling at the Spanish Capital on Saturday night.
Real Madrid are in pole position in the La Liga at the moment and six points clear – a commanding position to be in at this stage of the season. The los blancos have been in clinical form in the past few months as they continue to baffle opponents with their open play. The goals have been flying in for the men in royal white this season and they have not lost a match in the whole of the Group stage of the Champions League.
Jose Mourinho’s team are certainly better prepared for the Classico than last time around with no injuries bothering the side. Real have a fully fit squad at their disposal and there is not a single player who is out of form at the present time. This is the best chance that Cristiano Ronaldo and company will have in a while to get the better of Barca.
Real skipper Iker Casillas will start at goal with Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Ricardo Carvalho, and Marcelo in defence. In the middle of the park, Xabi Alonso should have either of Sami Khedira or Nuri Sahin partnering him with Cristiano Ronaldo and Angel di Maria on the flanks. Gonzalo Higuain should get a start in the role of the striker with Mesut Ozil deployed in a playmaking role just behind him.
Barcelona, who had started the season poorly by their lofty standards, have recovered dramatically in the past few weeks since their defeat at Getafe. Barca are playing a solid brand of football at the moment with Cesc Fabregas stamping his class on the team. Andres Iniesta is also back from an injury and fully fit ahead of the tie.
Barca will look to cut their opponents down to size one more time at the Spanish capital tomorrow. Victor Valdes will start at goal with the usual suspects – Carles Puyol, Gerard Pique, Dani Alves, and Eric Abidal manning the defence. Xavi and Fabregas should start in the middle of the park ahead of Sergio Busquets in defensive midfield. Lionel Messi will play down the center with Andres Iniesta and either of David Villa or Alexis Sanchez on the wings.
I will go with a 2-1 victory for Real Madrid this time around considering recent form.