Pretty much most of Spain will come to a halt this evening as everyone’s eyes will be glued to events at the Santiago Bernabeu as Real Madrid take on Barcelona in the Clasico.
Carlo Ancelotti’s men come into the fixture on the back of a 31-game unbeaten run and are looking for the 10th consecutive win at home. Indeed their last defeat in any competition came back in October, falling to a 2-1 reverse at the hands of their fierce rivals.
Barcelona have been in some rather inconsistent from by their standards of late. They thumped Osasuna 7-0 last weekend, with Leo Messi in ominously impressive form. But that was just their third win in five – something that has put Tata Martino under pressure somewhat, and for a few to start questioning whether he is the right man to take the club forward.
Madrid’s players and coaches have been keen to play down what a mean would win for the title race, but should they open a seven-point gap over the Catalan side, it would surely be curtains for Los Cules.
Barca forward Perdro is under no illusions about the match, saying they must win.
He stated: “A defeat would make it tough to pull ourselves back into the title race. But we are coming into the game in a good run of form and we know it’s all to play for there. We all want to put in a great performance and keep our treble hopes alive.
“Madrid might just be favourites because they are playing at home, but we know in this type of game there are never clear favourites at all – anything can happen.”
MADRID 3; BARCA 1. Hala madrid !!!