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Barcelona will host Real Madrid in the first edition of the 2021-22 season's El Clasico tonight.
Ronald Koeman and his players are under immense pressure as they go up against their bitter rivals Real Madrid at the Camp Nou tonight. Despite suffering some disappointing results prior to the international break, Barcelona can overtake Real Madrid in the La Liga table with a win on Sunday.
The post-Lionel Messi era has begun on a rather shaky note for the Catalans. They have struggled to dominate games and their weaknesses were exposed in the early stages of the new season. Back-to-back wins against Valencia and Dynamo Kiev in their most recent outings will have boosted their confidence.
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However, Real Madrid are a wholly different proposition. They've had their share of troubles too, falling to defeats against Sheriff Tiraspol and Espanyol heading into the latest international break. But they produced a dominant display over Shakhtar Donetsk in midweek, beating them 5-0.
Real Madrid have looked way more solid than Barcelona this season. Without further ado, let's take a look at five reasons why Barcelona will struggle against Real Madrid in El Clasico tonight.
#5 Barcelona attackers haven't been clinical
Ronald Koeman criticized his players for not being clinical in the game against Dynamo Kiev. The Barcelona manager believes his team should have won the game by three or four goals. In his post-match interview, Koeman said:
“This keeps us alive in the Champions League and anything is still possible thanks to this win, but we needed to finish the game off better than we’ve managed to.
“A game like this should have finished three or four-nil. When you have strikers who don’t possess the real quality, you can’t demand great finishing from them. But we do have top strikers and it’s their job to finish off matches like this one.”
Luuk De Jong, who was signed on loan from Sevilla on deadline day, has come under a lot of criticism. He has scored one goal in seven appearances across all competitions so far. Memphis Depay has been a bit inconsistent with his finishing and there's too much being asked of 18-year-old Ansu Fati.
They will have their work cut out against the Real Madrid defence and if they don't put away their chances tonight, they will suffer.
#4 Barcelona's poor recent record against Real Madrid
Barcelona have won just one of their last four El Clasicos. Real Madrid have won three. Los Blancos won both league meetings between the two sides in the 2020-21 season.
Real Madrid have also been victorious in all of their last three meetings with the Catalans and will fancy their chances going into this one. Barcelona have struggled against their bitter rivals even in the presence of Lionel Messi.
They are much weaker this term than they were last season and there's a good chance that Real Madrid might run riot at the Camp Nou tonight.
#3 Barcelona's injury woes
Barcelona have some major injury problems heading into the first El Clasico of the season. Jordi Alba is the latest arrival in the nursing room. He suffered a foot injury in the game against Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League.
They are reportedly set to be without as many as six players for the game against Real Madrid. Martin Braithwaite and Ronald Araujo are sidelined for a while. Pedri, Ousmane Dembele and Moussa Wague are the other players who are unavailable for the game.
The Catalans will need to rely on young Gavi to start in midfield tonight. There are only very few players in Barcelona's potential lineup who have prior El Clasico experience.
#2 Barcelona have lost every single match against strong oppositions so far
Barcelona have fared poorly in every single high-profile encounter of theirs so far this season. They were beaten comprehensively in their first two Champions League fixtures of the season.
Barcelona conceded 3-0 losses to Bayern Munich and Benfica. The loss against Bayern Munich happened at the Camp Nou and the loss against Benfica was on the road. They also fell to Atletico Madrid by a 2-0 scoreline.
Their record in big matches does not inspire any confidence and worse yet, their seems to be a serious lack of leadership on the field. If they kick on in the same vein, they will suffer against Real Madrid tonight.
#1 Real Madrid's attackers could pose a lot of problems for Barcelona
Real Madrid were dealt a major blow with Karim Benzema ruled to be a doubt for the game. However, the latest reports suggest that the Frenchman is all set to play tonight. Benzema has been in sublime form this season, scoring 11 goals and provided eight assists in 11 appearances across all competitions for Real Madrid.
Vinicius Jr. scored a stunning solo goal in the 5-0 win over Shakhtar Donetsk and the Brazilian has been exceptional in the new season as well. The 21-year-old has scored seven goals and racked up five assists in 11 appearances across all competitions so far this term.
Eden Hazard will be on the bench and even in the absence of Gareth Bale, the Real Madrid attack looks potent. The Barcelona defence will need to be on high-alerts tonight.
