Barcelona vs Real Madrid predictions and match preview for Sunday’s LaLiga fixture. Read on for analysis, team news and predicted lineups ahead of El Clasico.
| Date | Sunday 19th March 2023 |
| Kick-Off | 21:00 (CET) |
| Stadium | Camp Nou |
| Competition | LaLiga |
Barcelona vs Real Madrid Preview
It’s Clasico weekend in Spain as Barcelona and Real Madrid meet for the 4th time in the 2022/23 season. Real Madrid won the reverse fixture in LaLiga but Barça have claimed Copa del Rey and Supercopa victories over their great rivals since then whilst also taking control of the title race.
It’s a 9 point advantage for Barcelona heading into this game which will be very difficult for Real Madrid to make up. The Catalans have only dropped 10 points all season and victory here for them would feel like the end of this season’s title race and would surely spark a real party at Camp Nou. In a domestic setting, Barcelona are currently looking good to complete a trophy clean sweep which would give Xavi some significant foundations from which to build next season.
However off the pitch, another storm is brewing with the referee scandal hard to avoid when it comes to the backdrop to this game. It’s a story that will run and run, and while the accusations relate to a period before this current era, they still take some of the shine off Barcelona’s improvement this season.
Real Madrid will feel a bit aggrieved to be so far behind Barcelona with Xavi’s side continuing to grind out narrow and often unconvincing victories such as the 1-0 win in Bilbao last weekend. However Los Blancos may also need to take a look in the mirror when it comes to the points they’ve let slip in recent weeks.
They’ve only won half of their league games so far in 2023 with recent draws against Atletico Madrid and Real Betis meaning they simply have to win this fixture to retain a realistic shot at the title. They do still have the Champions League to aim for after Los Blancos made light work of Liverpool in the Last 16 with little drama in the end in midweek as a 1-0 win sealed a comfortable 6-2 aggregate progression.
Team News & Possible Lineups
Barcelona
| INJURED | Dembele, Pedri |
| DOUBTFUL | |
| BANNED |
Possible XI: Ter Stegen – Balde, Christensen, Araujo, Kounde – Kessie, Busquets, De Jong – Gavi, Lewandowski, Raphinha (4-3-3)
Coach: Xavi
Real Madrid
| INJURED | |
| DOUBTFUL | Alaba |
| BANNED |
Possible XI: Courtois – Nacho, Rudiger, Militao, Carvajal – Kroos, Tchouameni, Modric – Vini, Benzema, Valverde (4-3-3)
Coach: Carlo Ancelotti
Score Prediction: Barcelona 1-1 Real Madrid
There’s not a lot of injury issues on either side, although Pedri looks set to miss out again for Barcelona which could be significant. We should be a really good match and a good test of the respective levels of LaLiga’s big two. Barcelona will be the favourites but we’ve seen Xavi adopt a more pragmatic attitude at times in recent months and it’s unlikely he’ll take any great risks to target three points here given the advantage they already have in the title race.
PLEASE NOTE – Our LaLiga predictions are not betting tips! No profits are guaranteed if you’re using them to bet on Spanish football. If you are gambling, do so responsibly and never stake more than you can afford to lose. BeGambleAware.
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