© EuroFootball.com
T
The Royal club, playing at home, has not yet shown a very powerful game this season, but undoubtedly will be in good spirits before this match, as they crushed "Steaua" 4-1 in the UEFA Champions League midweek in Bucharest, while "Barcelona" suffered a minimal defeat to "Chelsea" in London.
It cannot be said so far that "Santiago Bernabeu" would be a fortress for "Real" this season - it started with a goalless draw against "Villarreal", then a victory at home against not the strongest "Real Sociedad", followed by an impressive victory against Kyiv's "Dynamo" 5-1, and the last home match - the Madrid derby with "Atletico" - ended 1-1.
"Barcelona" fans did not miss the chance to remind "Real" of some of their failures this season, such as a 2-0 loss to "Lyon" or even a disgraceful loss to Madrid's "Getafe" in the previous round of "La Liga".
The Royal club has unfinished business with "Barcelona": the last "El Clasico" in Madrid ended with one of the most shameful defeats in recent years: two goals from Ronaldinho, after which even the "Real" fans applauded, and another goal from Samuel Eto'o allowed "Barcelona" to triumph 3-0. The return match in Barcelona was not a revenge for "Real" - the clubs settled for a 1-1 draw.
Perhaps the biggest loss for the Royal club in this match will likely be the absence of the Brazilian Ronaldo. He will automatically miss this match due to two yellow cards in the match against Madrid's "Getafe" a week ago, although "Real" appealed the decision which was rejected, but a decision on further appeal will only be made on Sunday evening, just before the match.
Before the match, "Real" coach Fabio Capello decided to give the opportunity to midfielder Ivan Helguera to show himself. This means that Spain's national team defender Sergio Ramos will return to his usual right flank, pushing Michel Salgado onto the bench. I. Helguera will form a defensive duo with Italian national team star Fabio Cannavaro.
As has become customary this season, F. Capello will rely on the defensive duo of Emerson and Mahamadou Diarra in midfield for "El Clasico", which should "neutralize" Barcelona's main engines: Deco, Messi, Ronaldinho.
Having performed well in the match against "Steaua", Robinho is likely to retain his place in the starting lineup and play in the right flank, pushing David Beckham out. Spaniard Guti will play on the left flank, while team captain Raul will play "behind" the lone true forward Ruud van Nistelrooy. These matches will be of particular importance to Raul, as he suffered a serious leg injury last year in a home match against "Barca", which kept him out for three months.
The bench is expected to look like this: goalkeeper Diego Lopez, defenders Alvaro Mejia, Francisco Pavon, and Raul Bravo, defender D. Beckham and defender-forward Antonio Cassano.
"Barcelona", who started the season well, will likely rely on the same lineup in Sunday's match that lost to "Chelsea", with only one change: Sylvinho should play on the left flank instead of Gio van Bronckhorst.
There is some fear whether Spain's national team defender Carles Puyol will be able to play at full strength, but in any case, he will step onto the field.
In midfield, Edmilson, Xavi, and Deco are expected to play, Ronaldinho on the left flank, and Lionel Messi on the right. The striker position will most likely be taken by Iceland's Eidur Gudjohnsen, who is replacing the injured Cameroonian Samuel Eto'o.
Experts are trying to predict before the match tonight that "Real" will play more defensively and try to counterattack, while "Barcelona" will try to do what they do best: keep the ball as long as possible, thereby gaining not only territorial but also tactical advantage.
Possible lineups for the teams:
"Real": Casillas; Ramos, Cannavaro, Helguera, Roberto Carlos; Emerson, Diarra; Robinho, Guti, Raul; van Nistelrooy;
"Barcelona: Valdes; Zambrotta, Puyol, Marquez, Sylvinho; Edmilson, Xavi, Deco, Messi, Ronaldinho; Gudjohnsen;
