Barcelona will play hosts to Real Madrid at the Nou Camp in what is expected to be an enthralling ‘El Classico’ encounter on Sunday night. Both teams come into this game in a rich vein of form so it is difficult to pick out a winner out of this clash. The Catalans are cruising at the top of the La Liga standings while the Galacticos are performing incredibly well in the UEFA Champions League which means that neither team will back down from this meeting at Catalonia.
Ernesto Valverde could name a similar team to the one that he deployed against Deportivo La Coruna last weekend while Zinedine Zidane might look to rest some of his players in this gameweek. This game will attract an audience from all over the world including those who will be looking to land a winning bet. If you one of those people then I’d recommend checking out Footy Accumulators football tips page ahead of the game to see their predictions.
Team News
Barcelona
The Catalans will be well rested for this contest so Ernesto Valverde can definitely name a strong side on Sunday night. It is expected that he will opt for a 4-4-2 formation and could name Andres Iniesta in his lineup once again after the Spaniard was rested in their last league outing.
Real Madrid
The Galacticos could be tired after their recent midweek excursions against Bayern Munich and will now look to turn their attention in the league for a match against their bitter rivals. Zinedine Zidane will have no choice but to name a strong side capable of getting a positive result at the Nou Camp.
Predicted Lineups
Barcelona
Marc-Andre ter Stegen; Nelson Semedo, Gerard Pique, Samuel Umtiti, Jordi Alba; Phillipe Coutinho, Sergio Busquets, Ivan Rakitic, Andres Iniesta; Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez
Real Madrid
Keylor Navas; Achraf Hakimi, Raphael Varane, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo; Toni Kroos, Casemiro, Luka Modric; Lucas Vasquez, Cristiano Ronaldo, Isco
Key Men
Barcelona
The duo of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez will be expected to register their names on the scoresheet during this encounter while the likes of Phillipe Coutinho and Andres Iniesta will be responsible to create chances for their teammates to feed on! The defensive pairing of Gerard Pique and Samuel Umtiti will need to have a good game if they are to keep Los Blancos’ attackers at bay.
Real Madrid
The Galacticos have been lethal in front of goal in recent matches so they might decide to sit back and hit Barca with some fast and fluid counter-attacks. Cristiano Ronaldo will play a key role in the opposition half if the away side are to secure all three points at the Nou Camp this week. The duo of Raphael Varane and Sergio Ramos will also play an integral part in keeping the Barca attackers quiet during the night.
Odds
Barcelona win: 4/6
Draw: 10/3
Real Madrid win: 7/2
