Spanish football expert & LaLigaTV analyst Guillem Balague talks to Sporting Life about the huge Real Madrid v Barcelona game on Sunday.
Although the clubs are separated by only two points, this El Clasico is unlikely be pivotal in the title race, according to Balague.
Balague is the expert on Spanish football, so who better than the LaLigaTV pundit to talk to us about the atmosphere, the tactics and the players to watch out for at the Bernabeu.
Barcelona head coach Quique Setien may be less than two months, and just 10 games, in the job, but victory in his first Clasico would be a big step towards clinching La Liga.
Balague does not expect the match to be considered crucial in the title race should Barca win, and even less so if Zinedine Zidane’s team beat their great rivals for the first time since 2016.
“If Barcelona win it would be a five-point gap – that is a big gap,” LaLigaTV expert Balague told Sporting Life.
“But both Barcelona and Real Madrid have lost games you wouldn’t expect them to lose this season, it’s been a very competitive season.
“The level has dropped a little bit with Real losing Cristiano Ronaldo and Barcelona going through a little bit of turmoil, so the result might not mean a lot in the title race.
“We have seen ups and downs from both sides and there are still 12 matches after this, that’s so many games to go.”
The impact of Quique Setien
“If you’d told me a few weeks ago that Barcelona would be two points ahead of Real Madrid I would’ve said no way, we’re talking about another year, another century, but they just turned it around in no time.
“Quique Setien is a 61-year-old man who has got the dream of his life and he’s going to do it his own way, whatever the cost, so he knew there would be a transition with a team that had stopped pressuring so high and working so hard without the ball.
“He has given them the ball back, they are playing out from defence with high risk and recovering the ball very quickly. The identity is getting back to the pre-Valverde era.
“The feeling is that Barcelona are getting better.”
How will the game go?
“Two teams that need the ball and defend badly generally means goals. In the past because it’s meant a lot, you’ve had conservative Clasicos but I don’t think this will be a defining one.
“You find some players who are really at the top of their game – for Real, Dani Carvajal, Raphael Varane and Casemiro, and for Barcelona Gerard Pique is having a decent season, Leo Messi is scoring goals, Antoine Griezmann understands his role better now and Frenkie de Jong enjoys it much more under Setien.
“There is so much quality there and the defensive problems are still present so it should be goals. I’ve predicted a 2-2 because neither of them will want to lose.
“I think it will go mental box to box and then they will settle for the draw and continue their battles on another day.”
Sky TV and Virgin TV customers across the UK can watch El Clasico live on LaLigaTV this Sunday at 8pm GMT. LaLigaTV is the first dedicated channel to broadcast every live match and provide 24/7 access to “All of LaLiga. All in one place."
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