Just three days after locking horns at the Bernabeu in the second leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final, Real Madrid and Barcelona will meet once again, this time in La Liga.
Barca recorded a 3-0 victory at the Bernabeu on Wednesday night to book their spot in yet another Copa del Rey final and will be looking to pour more misery on their bitter rivals in Saturday's El Clasico.
Real Madrid
© ReutersAt the interval of Wednesday's Copa del Rey semi-final second leg, it seemed impossible that Madrid would be on the end of a heavy defeat having absolutely dominated the first 45 minutes of action.
Vinicius Junior could have had a first-half hat trick, with only poor finishing and some smart goalkeeping from Marc-Andre ter Stegen seeing Barca, who did not have a shot on target in the first period, enter the break on level terms.
It is difficult to say that Barca were outstanding in the second half, but they scored three unanswered goals to secure a 4-1 aggregate victory and ease into the final of the competition at Madrid's expense.
The Copa del Rey looked to be Madrid's most realistic chance of silverware this season, but they are still live in the Champions League and will fancy their chances of advancing to the quarter-finals when they welcome Ajax for the second leg of their round of 16 tie next week.
Unless something incredible happens, though, Madrid are not going to win the league. They will enter Saturday night's Clasico in third spot in the table, some nine points off leaders Barca on the same number of matches.
Santiago Solari's side did beat Levante in the league last weekend to return to winning ways, but seven defeats at this stage is simply not good enough for a team that has ambitions of winning the championship.
Los Blancos are very much locked in a battle with Atletico Madrid for second position and will be desperate to give their supporters something to cheer following the disappointment of Wednesday night.
Worryingly, though, Madrid have not actually won a home Clasico in the league since October 2014, while they were thumped 5-1 at Camp Nou in the reverse match earlier this season.
All of the capital club's eggs will once again be in the Champions League basket this term, but there is no downplaying the importance of this weekend's clash as the European champions look to answer back.
Recent form: WWWWLW
Recent form (all competitions): DWWLWL
Barcelona
© ReutersQuite how Barca ran out three-goal winners at the Bernabeu on Wednesday night is a bit of a mystery. It is difficult to remember a first half where the Catalan outfit have played poorer this season, but four second-half minutes ultimately decided the contest as Ernesto Valverde's side moved a step closer to winning their fifth straight Copa del Rey.
Luis Suarez made the breakthrough with a smart finish in the 50th minute, before an own goal from Raphael Varane made it 2-0 on the night in the 69th minute. Four minutes later, Barca had their third as Suarez converted from the penalty spot after being hauled to the ground by Casemiro.
Barca have not been at their best in recent weeks, but came from behind to beat Sevilla 4-2 in the league last weekend and the result away to Madrid earlier this week suggests that they are not doing too badly at all.
The treble is very much on for Valverde's team this season and they might feel that a win at the Bernabeu this weekend will effectively secure the title. They are seven points ahead of second-placed Atletico as it stands, but on the other hand, a defeat in El Clasico would certainly open the door for Diego Simeone's side.
While a Copa del Rey and La Liga double would represent another excellent season, there is no question that the Champions League is the trophy that the club really wants to win this term.
The Spanish champions drew 0-0 with Lyon in the first leg of their last-16 tie earlier this month and will be looking to finish the job when they lock horns at Camp Nou on March 13.
Barca have a hugely talented squad, but they would not be in the position to land three more trophies without the presence of Lionel Messi. The Argentine has 33 goals in 33 matches this season and struck a treble against Sevilla in the league last weekend to continue his stunning form.
Barca, meanwhile, know that a win this weekend would move them level with Madrid in terms of Clasico wins. Indeed, it will be their 241st meeting in all competitions, with Los Blancos now only leading 95 wins to Barca's 94.
It is difficult to determine what type of match is going to occur with the two teams meeting in the same stadium just three days before, but it is shaping up to be yet another fascinating battle.
Recent form: WWDDWW
Recent form (all competitions): DDWDWW
Team News
© ReutersThibaut Courtois will be back between the sticks for Madrid, but midfielder Marcos Llorente is not expected to take part as he continues to recover from a muscular problem.
Varane suffered a nasty cut to his knee when he scored the own goal on Wednesday night, but the Frenchman should be fit to line up alongside Sergio Ramos in central defence.
It seems likely that Solari will make changes, though, with Gareth Bale and Marco Asensio pushing for starts.
Dani Ceballos and Marcelo, meanwhile, are among those who will be pushing for minutes having been left on the bench for Wednesday's Clasico.
As for Barca, head coach Valverde has no fresh injury concerns from the team that stated on Wednesday night.
Samuel Umtiti is recently back from a knee problem and could replace Clement Lenglet, though, while Arthur also made his return from injury off the bench last time out and is in line for a return.
Philippe Coutinho for Ousmane Dembele is another alteration that could occur, but the Frenchman was excellent in the second half of Wednesday's clash and Valverde could ultimately decide to keep with the same front three.
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Courtois; Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; Casemiro, Ceballos, Modric; Bale, Benzema, Vinicius
Barcelona possible starting lineup:
Ter Stegen; Semedo, Umtiti, Pique, Alba; Rakitic, Busquets, Arthur; Dembele, L Suarez, Messi
Head To Head
As mentioned, Saturday will bring the 241st Clasico. Madrid lead the head-to-head 95 wins to Barca's 94, with the remaining 51 fixtures finishing level.
Barca thumped Madrid 5-1 at Camp Nou in the league earlier this season, while the Catalan outfit recorded a 3-0 victory when they last travelled to the Bernabeu in the league in the latter stages of 2017.
Madrid have won just one of the last eight league Clasicos, while they have not beaten Barca on home soil in Spain's top flight since a 3-1 home success in October 2014.
We say: Real Madrid 1-1 Barcelona
Madrid will be desperate to give their supporters something to cheer following Wednesday's loss, but Barca are proving very difficult to beat at the moment. We fancy a low-scoring draw at the Bernabeu.
