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Barcelona | Real Madrid | |
League Standing | 1 | 2 |
Points | 84 in 31 matches | 76 in 31 matches |
Form | WWWDW | WLWWW |
Top scorer | Lionel Messi (29) | Cristiano Ronaldo (28) |
Head to Head in Liga | 63W 30D 68L | 68W 30D 63L |
Goals in el clásico in liga | 251 | 262 |
Last meeting | Barcelona 5-0 Real Madrid29th November, 2010 Scorers: Xavi 10’, Pedro 18’, Villa 55’, 58’, Jeffren 90’. | |
We are now close to the end of the season. And the end of this exciting season has become more interesting with the prospect of the best teams in the world football meeting as many as 4 times within 18 days. El Clásico, the fierce rivalry between Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid, is the best showpiece in the world of football taking into consideration the huge history between them and the quality of player they consist of. And the treat to all the footballkeedas begin this Saturday with the teams meeting for their la liga clash at the Santiago Bernabeu.
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For more detailed study on El Clásico, read:
- The History of El Clásico.
- The players who ruled El Clásico.
- Some footballing rivalries similar to El Clasico.
After 1916 it is the first time that Real Madrid and Barcelona are meeting as many as 4 times within a short period of 18 days. (To read details of the 1916 matches click here.) With other matches deciding the fate of the teams in the respective tournaments, the La Liga tie on 16th April seems to be the least important of all as Barcelona has almost sealed the League with 8 points lead with just 7 matches left. Looking at the things Barcelona afford to lose this match as they will still have a lead of 5 points and Madrid will have tricky away trips to Valencia, Sevilla and Villarreal left among others. While for Real Madrid a loss will mean to leave aside any hope of giving the Catalan side a fight for the championship.
Team News:
Real Madrid:
Canales, Pedro Leon, Lass Diara and Gago will miss the tie for Real Madrid. However, coach Jose Mourinho has a long list of players in his squad who can be given a start in any match. If Kaka is fit to start that will give him headache of choosing between him and regular starter Angel di Maria. Looking at the recent selections he has made, where he has not shown much faith on off-form Kaka, Mourinho may stick to his regular starting line up of three attacking midfielders Ronaldo, Özil and Di Maria. However, with both Higuain and Benzema back from injuries and Adebayor doing good in the recent times, Mourinho will have more problems to chose. However, looking at the aerial threat that Adebayor pose, Mourinho may chose him over his two preferred strikers to play on top of his midfield. Xabi Alonso and Sami Khedira will act as the holding midfielders above the defence line of Ramos, Carvalho, Pepe and Marcelo. Mourinho may choose to play with 3 holding midfielders learning from the last match when Xabi Alonso and Khedira were tormented by Barcelona attackers. In that case Pepe may be promoted to the role with his experience with Portugal national team at the position of defensive midfielder as Lass is missing the match with injury. If Pepe is promoted Raul Albiol will take his place at the heart of the defence and Angel Di Maria will be on the bench. However, this match is a must-win for them and that will lead to the special one field his preferred eleven.
Probable line up: Casillas; Ramos, Carvalho, Pepe, Marcelo; Xabi Alonso, Khedira; Di Maria, Özil, Ronaldo; Adebayor.
Messi: Waiting to score against Mou!
Barcelona, on the other hand, have a lot of defensive worries to frown on. Puyol’s long lasting injury has caused a lot of problems in the defence and with Abidal also being out for the rest of the season, Pep Guardiola will have to play Milito, Fontas or Busquets as a partner of Pique. Milito’s current form and inexperience of Fontas do not give enough confidence to put them in the match against a team like Real Madrid who have a formidable attacking line up. Busquets, though mistake prone, can be more reliable at the position with his quick passing skills, but with Javier Mascherano missing the tie with yellow card suspension, the problem will then shift to the defensive midfield. Keita may take the position behind Xavi and Iniesta. Pedro is back from his injury and he is rested enough to take a starting place in this match. Bojan’s injury will keep him out of the tie but he will not be missed much as Barcelona have the option of putting in Affelay or taking Iniesta to the wing putting in Thiago if the necessity arises. If Pep Guardiola goes for a variation in the line up he may use Maxwell in the midfield as well making either of Villa and Pedro wait for their turn from the bench. But I guess Pep will show faith in Keita to the defensive job and will start him with MVP at the top.
Probable Line Up: Valdes; Alves, Pique, Busquets, Adriano; Keita, Xavi, Iniesta; Villa, Messi, Pedro.
Face to Face: Mourinho and Guardiola
People Speak:
Jose Mourinho (Coach Real Madrid):
Its important to finish the match with 11 players. Somehow my team missed that last few times I played against Barcelona.
Pep Guardiola (Coach Barcelona):
I have always been impressed by Madrid, as a player and as a coach, and even when I was still a kid. Now, they are better than in the first round. They are faster, more powerful and shoot more than us. They can play in many different ways, and in some ways is the best team in the world.
Fabio Capello (Coach England):
Barcelona are missing something in the defence without Puyol and Abidal and Madrid can score any time. But Barca are playing witha different kind of football with high pressure and ball recovery.
Vicente Del Bosque (coach Spain):
This will be a Spanish football party that will last for four games. Barcelona are a very patient team and Real Madrid have a lot of energy and quick transition.
I’m not worried, I’m excited… This is the moment in which we can win everything, or win nothing. We have to think that we can beat Barcelona, they are not from another planet. They play like the best but we are good too.
Ibrahim Afellay:
The most important think now is the Saturday’s match. We can not go to Bernabeu already thinking of cup final. It will be difficult to repeat the 5-0 result as Madrid are a good team and are playing at home this time.
The history of the rivalry being so strong gives no option of taking this match lightly even though its importance is much less than the 3 other matches that these two teams are going to play amongst themselves in the next few days. They have to win this match for their pride, glory and the bragging rights for the fans. Moreover, a win here will give the teams a much needed confidence boost ahead of three more important matches that they have to play. We do expect to see total effort from both the teams and a solid match to put on display. Master tactician Jose Mourinho must have learnt from the mistakes in November to prevent another setback to the good run they enjoying now. The football fans will expect to see a great duel between the best teams in the world and more importantly the best players of the moment, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. My prediction for this match will be a 2-1 win for Barcelona but I did a similar prediction a few months ago. The players who will be on field at Santiago Bernabeu can lead to anything that may expect or not.
