Real Madrid will host FC Barcelona in one of the most anticipated matches in the world at Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday in their 32nd La Liga clash.
Eight points clear of their arch-rivals, Madrid are in high spirits as they are nearing their record-extending 36th title win. They also defeated Manchester City in their UEFA Champions League quarter-final with Antonio Rudiger converting the final penalty after a 120-minute-long battle that saw Carlo Ancelotti’s side delivering a defensive masterclass.
On the other hand, despite being in top form since January 26, Barcelona met with a heavy blow as they were defeated 4-1 by Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) at their home ground in the Champions League quarter-final.
The Blaugrana had a two-goal lead over PSG when their star defender Ronald Araujo made a last-man tackle which earned him a red card. The French side took full advantage of Barcelona going down to 10 men and dominated them for the remainder of the match and scored four goals to qualify for the semi-final.
Barcelona need a win at all costs if they want to keep their hopes up for silverware this season as a loss at the Bernabeu on Sunday would put them 11 points behind Los Blancos with just six more matches to go, knowing Madrid’s record in the decisive phase of the season, it would be a rarity to see them dropping further points.
Also, the last three El Clasicos ended up with Madrid emerging as winners. Their most recent encounter took place in the Spanish Super Cup final in Saudi Arabia where Vinicius Jr. scored a first-half hat-trick to steer his side to the title.
Predicted Lineups
Real Madrid: Andriy Lunin; Ferland Mendy, Aurelien Tchouameni, Antonio Rudiger, Dani Carvajal; Toni Kroos, Eduardo Camavinga; Jude Bellingham, Federico Valverde, Rodrygo; Vinicius Junior
Barcelona: Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Joules Kounde, Ronald Araujo, Pau Cubarsi, Joao Cancelo, Frenkie de Jong, Ilkay Gundogan, Andres Christensen, Lamine Yamal, Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha
Prediction:
It is always difficult to predict the outcome of a match as big as El Clasico as more than the form, the team picking up the moments wins such matches. Regardless, we will go with Real Madrid winning the match.
Real Madrid 3-1 FC Barcelona
