Preview
Real Madrid and FC Barcelona resume their bitter rivalry in what promises to be one of the biggest El Clasico battles in years.
The Spanish title race is tight with nine games to go: Atletico Madrid sit top on 66 points, with Ronald Koeman’s Barca a point behind in second and Zinedine Zidane’s Real just three off Diego Simeone’s leaders in third.
La Liga glory seemed beyond Real and Barca earlier this season, but Atletico’s inability to close things out has allowed the two Clasico rivals to hunt them down.
If teams are level on points in La Liga come the end of the season, head-to-head record – not goal difference – decides the title, which makes this Clasico potentially decisive.
It was 3-1 to the visitors when these two sides met in the reverse fixture at the Camp Nou back in October 2020. Federico Valverde, Sergio Ramos, and Luka Modric scored to secure the three points for Madrid. The record is split down the middle in recent years. The last six matches have seen two Madrid wins, two Barcelona wins, and two draws.
Form Guide: Real Madrid
Los Blancos are currently third in Spain’s top flight, two points behind second-placed Barca, who now trail leaders Atletico Madrid by just a single point with nine games left.
Unbeaten in La Liga since the end of January, Los Blancos have won seven and drawn three of their last 10 league matches to leave themselves very much in the title picture. As mentioned, the reigning champions are third in the table, two points behind second-placed Barca and just three points behind leaders Atletico.
Madrid ran out 2-0 winners over Eibar in the league last weekend, with Marco Asensio and Karim Benzema on the scoresheet; Zidane’s team have been strong at home this term, but three of their four league defeats in 2020-21 have arrived at the Alfredo Di Stefano Stadium.
Los Blancos were in Champions League action on Tuesday night, meanwhile, and recorded a 3-1 win over Liverpool in the first leg of their quarter-final contest to leave themselves in a strong position to advance ahead of the second leg at Anfield on April 14.
Zidane’s team could, in theory, still win La Liga and the Champions League this season, but it will take some tremendous effort to remain competitive on all fronts.
Form Guide: Barcelona
Barcelone were not in Champions League action during the week, with the Catalan giants losing to Paris Saint-Germain in the last-16 stage of the competition towards the start of March.
As a result, Ronald Koeman’s side will have had longer to prepare for this match, with their last fixture bringing a 1-0 win over Real Valladolid in La Liga on Monday night.
Ousmane Dembele scored the only goal of the match in the 90th minute, and there is no downplaying the importance of the victory, which moved the Catalan giants back into second and just a point behind Atletico, who are wobbling at the business end of the season.
Since losing to Cadiz at the start of December, Barca’s league form has been excellent, and they will enter this weekend’s contest off the back of six straight victories in Spain’s top flight.
Koeman’s side thumped Real Sociedad 6-1 in their last away league game on February 21, but they lost three times on their travels in La Liga this term, with Getafe, Atletico and Cadiz all triumphing in the first half of the campaign.
Neither Madrid nor Barca would be out of the title race if they lose this weekend, but it is the perfect chance to strike a blow to a bitter rival.
How the Match Could Go
Both teams will enter this match in impressive form, and Madrid will be feeling particularly confident due to their excellent performance against Liverpool in the Champions League.
It would not be a surprise to see either a home win or an away win on Saturday evening, but a draw would not be the end of the world for either. One thing is for sure and that’s the fact that we can expect an entertaining game at the Alfredo Di Stefano stadium, with both teams looking to make the early mark.
Betting Tip: Over 2.5 goals
Barcelona’s goal return in away matches has been very muted with the Catalans managing over 2.5 goals only a handful of occasions in 2021. Zinedine Zidane has been unable to prevent Real Madrid from leaking goals and the clean sheet against Eibar is one of the rare occasions when the capital outfit have kept a solid defense since February. With that in mind, we expect the over 2.5 tip to come through. Bet9ja have 1.55 odds, Bet365 have 1.57 and 1xbet have 1.64.
Both Teams to Score
Both teams scored in the last Clasico but that bet failed to land in the previous four meetings. However, given what is at stake at the moment, we expect both teams to have a go at each other and there is a strong possibility of goals at both ends. As earlier said, Real Madrid’s defence hasn’t been the best of late and we expect that they’ll find the mark on home turf once at the very least. Bet9ja have 1.47 odds, Bet365 have 1.50 and 1xbet have 1.53.
Anytime Goal-scorer (Real Madrid)
Karim Benzema
Karim Benzema has been nothing short of consistent for Real Madrid this term. The Frenchman’s seven-game scoring sequence came to an end in the midweek Champions League match against Liverpool. Even though his record against Barcelona is not so great, Benzema is a great pick to score anytime. Overall, Benzema has again been in excellent form during the 2020-21 campaign, finding the back of the net on 24 occasions in 34 appearances in all competitions, including 18 goals in 25 La Liga outings. Bet365 have 2.05 odds while Bet9ja have 2.40.
Vinicius Jnr
The Brazilian has been impressive in recent weeks and put in a strong perforamance against Liverpool in midweek with a brilliant brace. The only thing lacking in his game is that final end product and he looks to be getting just that in recent weeks. He could be one to score again. Bet365 have 3.00 odds while Bet9ja have it better at 4.00.
Anytime Goal-scorer (Barcelona)
Lionel Messi
The Argentine maestro is enjoying another excellent campaign at club level, scoring 29 times and registering 13 assists in 38 appearances. However, Lionel Messi hasn’t scored in a Clasico for almost three years and he’ll be looking to end that run today. Barca’s last game against Real Valladolid was the first time Messi failed to score or assist in La Liga in 26 games. In any game at all for Barcelona, he remains the number one man to get on the score-sheet. Bet365 have 1.72 odds for him to score while Bet9ja have 2.20.
Ousmane Dembele
The Frenchman has been something of Barcelona’s saviour in recent games. Last time out, he bailed them out with a goal in extra time to ensure they didn’t share the spoils. In his last two La Liga games, he has now scored three goals and could come as value once again to get on the score-sheet. Bet365 have 2.75 odds while Bet9ja have 3.75.
Football Lover. All-round junkie of the beautiful game. Could be found watching football most of the time. If not he’s writing about them or making some punditry you don’t agree with. A certain bias for Arsenal and Santos FC.