As Camp Nou gets ready to host the first Clasico of the season, both clubs in their own rebuilding phase will look to get one over their arch rivals. Both clubs have had rather inconsistent starts to the season, by their lofty standards. With the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, this fixture has somewhat lost its glory but the political reasons behind the rivalry will continue to fuel this fixture.
FC Barcelona have come from a nightmare season,not winning any trophy and conceding 8 against Bayern Munich. With renewed hope, under Dutch boss Ronald Koeman, they have started pretty poorly in La Liga, winning two of their four matches. Although it is very early in the season, Barcelona are languishing at tenth in the table. With all the behind the scenes drama, they have coped pretty well. Lionel Messi will be their star man as usual. Coutinho has done well on his return to the club. Griezmann hasn’t yet found his feet in Catalonia. All eyes would be on Gerrard Pique, who got a red card in the midweek Champions League clash. Serginho Dest seems to have adapted well to life in Barcelona. The form of Ansu Fati is a huge positive for Koeman’s men.
Real Madrid under Zidane have now been rebuilding for more than two seasons now. They badly need Sergio Ramos to play well as whenever he is out of the team, Real seem to lose their plot. Benzema hasn’t hit the heights of last season. Eden Hazard hasn’t shown even one percent of his Chelsea form. Vinicius and Rodrygo seem to be performing well but only in patches and haven’t been consistent yet. They are on a two match losing streak and badly need to break it with a positive result against Barcelona. Mendy or Marcelo, who ever starts, will have to deal with Messi. The match looks evenly poised on current form.
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