5 key battles to look out for as Barcelona hosts Atletico Madrid

#1 Marc-Andre Ter Stegen vs Jan Oblak

Oblak and Ter Stegen may have the biggest impact on the game

Of course, Atletico vs Barcelona will showcase a number of stars on the outfield, but it will be utterly foolish to underestimate the pressure the goalkeepers will have to shoulder during the 90 minutes.

They might be at far ends of the field, but Marc-Andre Ter Stegen and Jan Oblak have got equally tough battles to face. To start with, there are a number of dangerous attackers both have to be wary of.

Oblak has been in fine form this season. He is currently leading the clean sheets chart with 17 under his belt in 26 games, 2 more than Ter Stegen has in as many matches. However, the Slovenian will also come up against the league's top two center forwards which is a challenge in itself.

At the other end of the field, the German shot-stopper has his own worries to take care of. Diego Costa has been in fine form and Antoine Griezmann's recent tally of 7 goals in 2 games means Ter Stegen will have to be at his imperious best for each of the 90 minutes on the pitch.

Ter Stegen is considerably weak when it comes to handling crosses and the Atletico forwards could take a good advantage of this inadequacy. Meanwhile, Suarez and Messi will have to be razor sharp in front of goal, knowing the fact that they will face statistically the best keeper in the league.

Mistakes between the posts will certainly not be accepted and will be punished severely. The battle between the goalkeepers will be the most vital individual duel that will decide the outcome of this fixture.