El Clasico gets its first run of this campaign on Saturday with Real Madrid hosting Barcelona at Santiago Bernabeu in La Liga. The Catalan giants lead the way and have been better than their capital rivals so far this term, but Carlo Ancelotti’s men are only three points behind in second place which makes this a key encounter. Win and Real have made up ground on Barca which even a few weeks ago seemed unlikely given the fast start under Hansi Flick, but a draw or win for the visitors really gives them a strong title race advantage.
Los Blancos have won their last four meetings across all competitions which included a La Liga double last season with the Santiago Bernabeu meeting finishing 3-2 as part of an unbeaten home run against the Blaugrana which dates back to early 2022. Real beat Celta Vigo 3-2 last time out domestically while a 5-2 midweek thrashing of Borussia Dortmund in the UEFA Champions League has improved their continental standings situation. Kylian Mbappe remains difficult to bed in with the likes of Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Junior, but a win here would complete an encouraging early season recovery.
Barca have started life brilliantly under Flick with a 5-1 thrashing of Sevilla in La Liga followed by a 4-1 thumping of Bayern Munchen in the Champions League. The German could not have gotten off to a better start and with players returning from a major injury crisis, the Catalans should only get stronger. This is part of a derby doubleheader with Espanyol up next and the chance to open up a potential six-point lead over Real will be very appealing for the Blaugrana as they visit Madrid.
Here’s our storylines, how you can watch the match and more:
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How to watch and odds
- Date: Saturday, October 26 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
- Location: Santiago Bernabeu – Madrid, Spain
- Watch: ESPN Deportes | Stream: Fubo (try for free)
- Odds: Real +105; Draw +300; Barca +220
Season so far
Real have not been anywhere near their best level of late but they remain unbeaten with seven wins and three draws from their 10 La Liga outings to sit second. Barca have won nine of 10 games despite significant injury issues which gives them a three-point lead coming into this one. The visitors are top scorers in La Liga with 33 goals to average better than three goals per game which will be what Los Merengues attempt to address. Real face Valencia, Osasuna and Milan before the November international break while Barca take on Espanyol, Real Sociedad and Crvena Zvezda before the next break.
Team news
Real: Courtois and Rodrygo have both been ruled out post-Bayern so Andriy Lunin will step in between the sticks and Bellingham could sit behind a front two of Mbappe and Vini Jr. Bellingham has not scored yet this year but Vinicius and Mbappe both have eight goals. Brahim Diaz could return to the squad after injury to provide Ancelotti with another option but David Alaba and Dani Carvajal miss out along with Courtois and Rodrygo.
Possible Real XI: Lunin; Vazquez, Militao, Rudiger, Mendy; Valverde, Tchouameni, Camavinga; Bellingham; Vinicius, Mbappe.
Barca: Frenkie de Jong, Dani Olmo and Gavi are all fit and could be on the bench for El Clasico. Marc Casado should continue in midfield alongside Pedri while Fermin Lopez could take a No. 10 role. Ronald Araujo, Ferran Torres, Andreas Christensen, Marc Bernal and Marc-Andre ter Stegen all miss out but Eric Garcia could return. Robert Lewandowski has been prolific with 15 goals across 13 appearances in all competitions leading the line.
Possible Barca XI: Pena; Kounde, Cubarsi, I Martinez, Balde; Casado, Pedri; Yamal, Fermin, Raphinha; Lewandowski.
Prediction
This one feels like it will finish fairly even with Real and Barca scoring at least once but neither side emerging on top. With so much on the line in terms of the potential points gap situation, this is one that matters slightly more to the hosts. Pick: Real 1, Barca 1.
