As the momentous event arises, ardent soccer followers brace themselves in anticipation for the upcoming conflict between age-old adversaries, Barcelona and Real Madrid on Wednesday after they face off in an all-important Copa del Rey semifinal on the Camp Nou stadium.
This would be the fifth assembly between the 2 heavyweights this season and the Catalans presently maintain a 3-1 lead over Carlo Ancelotti’s Los Blancos.
Despite their harm woes within the first leg, Barcelona managed to safe an important slender 1-0 win because of an Eder Militao purpose.
At residence, La Blaugrana might be hoping to complete off their rivals and safe a berth within the Copa del Rey ultimate.
Real Madrid, however, might be in search of vengeance and making an attempt to overturn the deficit on enemy territory after being thwarted by Barcelona at each flip this season.
Despite being behind Barcelona by 12 factors in La Liga, Los Blancos might be desperate to halt Barcelona’s home treble hopes, having already misplaced the Spanish Super Cup to Xavi’s facet in Saudi Arabia.
At this stage of the season, Barcelona’s lack of European commitments could also be an enormous blow to their popularity.
However, they’ve used the additional time to make sure there are not any slip-ups within the league title race, profitable their subsequent 4 La Liga video games by a mixed scoreline of 8-1 since their first-leg victory over Real Madrid within the Copa del Rey.
From the seems to be of it, Barcelona ought to have an easy run to the league crown, with 11 video games remaining, however the trophy-hungry Blaugranas can even be decided to succeed in the Spanish cup ultimate for the eighth time in ten campaigns.
Since the 2006-07 season, they’ve progressed from each semifinal tie after profitable the primary leg.
Barcelona’s near-impregnable protection has indisputably confirmed to be their most potent asset this season.
The Catalan giants have convincingly triumphed in 5 consecutive matches, yielding a paltry solitary purpose in that spell, a truth which augurs positively for his or her upcoming encounter on Wednesday.
They have additionally embarked upon a formidable nine-game undefeated streak at their residence floor, whereby their most up-to-date triumph culminated in a vital 2-1 victory over Ancelotti’s facet, marking a big milestone as their a centesimal win in opposition to their fierce Clasico adversaries.
Real Madrid’s protracted struggles in opposition to Barcelona have undoubtedly prolonged to their performances within the league.
Nevertheless, they just lately reinvigorated their morale with an emphatic 6-0 overcome Real Valladolid, the place Rodrygo, Marco Asensio and Lucas Vasquez all put their names on the scoresheet.
However, it was Karim Benzema who stole the limelight with a lightning-quick hat trick inside a mere seven minutes, successfully sealing the sport earlier than halftime.
Notwithstanding their dominant show, the chance of Real Madrid securing the title this season seems slim however Ancelotti’s expenses retain a robust perception of their talents as they gear as much as face Chelsea within the quarterfinals of the Champions League, in search of to defend their European crown.
Los Blancos are likewise desperate to safe a berth within the Copa del Rey ultimate, a feat they haven’t completed because the 2013/14 season after they acquired the higher of Barcelona.
Nevertheless, the duty at hand for Real Madrid is significantly difficult, provided that solely Bayern Munich, have managed to safe a victory in opposition to Barcelona at Camp Nou this season.
Moreover, Real Madrid’s latest subpar kind, marked by a two-game winless streak away from residence, casts doubt upon their potential to beat such a frightening impediment.
Barcelona, however, confront the upcoming match with a number of urgent issues of their very own, as they are going to be unable to area key gamers reminiscent of Pedri, Ousmane Dembele, Frenkie de Jong and Andreas Christensen, all of whom are recuperating from accidents.
However, there may be some good news for La Blaugrana, as Raphinha is poised to make a comeback after serving his suspension.
The Brazilian could not characteristic within the beginning lineup, because the likes of Ansu Fati and Ferran Torres, each of whom delivered noteworthy performances within the crew’s latest overcome Elche, are anticipated to retain their locations within the crew.
Meanwhile, Ancelotti faces the absence of Ferland Mendy, who might be out of motion for six weeks because of a calf harm, regardless of only recently coming back from a two-month spell on the sidelines with a thigh drawback.
However, the Italian supervisor can depend on Antonio Rudiger, who sat out of the weekend’s win in opposition to Valladolid because of knee discomfort.
Although the German heart again has resumed coaching, he has but to rejoin the squad and his situation might be assessed over the following two days.
Mariano Diaz additionally skilled alone however is unlikely to characteristic within the midweek encounter.
Nacho Fernandez, who had served a La Liga suspension, can also be obtainable if Rudiger’s return proves premature.
Source: www.dailysabah.com
