The Bernabeu no doubt will come alive again today as the El Clasico brings the attention of football fans to Spain and the match is sure to produce plenty of goals.
Beyond the goals, two players Real Madrid and reigning FIFA Ballon D’ oR winner Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi of Barcelona. With the 10 FIFA World Player of the Year titles between the two, the battle of supremacy is bound to come to fore.
While there is huge emotional significance attached to every meeting between these two clubs, today’s Clasico at the Bernabeu is also a matter of cold mathematical reality for Real Madrid.
A defeat for the current Spanish champions would leave them 14 points behind their eternal rivals and even with 66 points left still to play for, the gap would be extremely difficult to close.
Indeed, the Catalans head to the Spanish capital with a double digit lead over Madrid thanks to an unbeaten opening 16 matches of the season and a draw for Ernesto Valverde’s men would be an excellent result.
The pressure is very much on the hosts to take the game to the league leaders, and manager Zinedine Zidane will be hoping his side can rekindle some of the magic they showed during the Spanish Super Cup in August when they outplayed Barca both home and away to record a 5-1 aggregate win.
The previous league meeting between these two sides back in April produced one of the most iconic La Liga moments in recent years, with Lionel Messi’s injury time winner and the ensuing celebration with his shirt hoisted aloft.
The 3-2 victory was Barca’s third win at the Bernabeu in the last four visits and whether they are contested in Madrid or Barcelona, Clasicos tend to produce plenty of goals.
The last time the Blaugrana failed to score in a league Clasico was in 2007, while the last goalless draw between these sides in La Liga came back in 2002, so backing goals in the game generally makes sense.
This selection has paid out in five of the last six league Clasicos at the Bernabeu, where, after a tricky start, Real Madrid have rediscovered their scoring touch; Zidane’s men have netted 19 goals in their last six matches in their own stadium, with this selection paying out in each of their last four home matches.
|Sun