Barcelona can assert their dominance over Real Madrid once again in the Bernabeu on Saturday evening
The low point of Jose Mourinho’s managerial career came in November, when his Real Madrid side were beaten 5-0 by Barcelona in the Nou Camp in one of the most one sided ‘El Clasico’ matches of all time. The Portuguese will be looking for revenge this Saturday, when the bitter rivals meet in the Bernabeu but whether or not his team are capable of beating Barca is debatable.
While it is true that Real have a better home record than their rivals, having won 14 out of 15 matches in front of their own supporters, they are a massive eight points behind the La Liga leaders and are yet to prove themselves as credible challengers to Pep Guardiola’s side’s dominance of Spanish football.
The Catalans are favourites to win on Saturday and with Lionel Messi back amongst the goals at the weekend it is difficult to see past the visitors. The World Player of the Year has now netted 29 times in 31 league matches this season and is the favourite in the first goalscorer market. Messi’s strike partner, David Villa, may have scored less times than the Argentine this season but he scored twice against Real Madrid earlier in the season and makes slightly more appeal.
Real Madrid are underdogs to beat Barcelona and there will be some who will feel that those odds on a team with such a strong record are too good to turn down. However, Cristiano Ronaldo is currently being nursed back to health, as is Kaka and while Mesut Ozil and Angel Di Maria are both enjoying good seasons, they will struggle to make an impact against a well drilled Barcelona defence.
Ultimately, the biggest problem for the hosts, as with all sides who play Barcelona, will be getting the ball. Madrid don’t play a short passing game like their rivals and instead look to move the ball from back to front as quickly as possible. This works to an extent and can catch out weaker teams but Xavi, Iniesta and Busquets don’t get drawn out of position as they never have to chase the ball. This means the Barca defence is always protected and the Real threat will be nullified.