See El Clásico 2024: Real Madrid vs Barcelona

real Madrid hosts Barcelona in the first Clásico of the season. Following a victory over Celta Vigo last time out in league action, Los Blancos have the opportunity to move level on points with Barça at the top of the La Liga table. Furthermore, Real Madrid could equal Barcelona’s record of 43 unbeaten league games with a win or a draw.

Carlo Ancelotti’s men face this high-risk encounter without a couple of key players. Thibaut Courtois and Rodrygo will miss out through injury as both players suffered setbacks in the club’s midweek comeback against Borussia Dortmund in the UEFA Champions League. David Alaba and Dani Carvajal are long-term casualties.

Notably, this match will also mark Kylian Mbappé’s first El Clásico test since signing from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer.

Real Madrid starting eleven: Lunin, Vázquez, Rudiger, Militao, Mendy, Tchouameni, Camavinga, Valverde, Bellingham, Vinicius, Mbappé.

Barcelona: Grief; Koundé, Cubarsi, Martínez, Balde; Casado, Pedri, Fermín; Yamal, Lewandowski, Raphinha

Our starting XI!
@FCBarcelona #ElClásico pic.twitter.com/tes04v9Hqt

— Real Madrid CF (@realmadriden) October 26, 2024

FURTHER: El Clásico 2024: Real Madrid’s planned lineup to face Barcelona

Real Madrid form guide (last 5 matches)
October 22: Real Madrid 5-2 Borussia Dortmund
October 19: Celta Vigo 1-2 Real Madrid
October 5: Real Madrid 2-0 Villarreal
October 2: Lille 1-0 Real Madrid
September 29: Atlético de Madrid 1-1 Real Madrid

Meanwhile, Barcelona will be without Andreas Christensen, Ferran Torres, Marc Bernal, Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Ronald Araujo due to injury. Eric Garcia could also miss out after struggling to recover from a recent setback.

Despite that injury list, Hansi Flick’s side are prepared for this delightful encounter, after a 4-1 victory over Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League and a 5-1 victory against Sevilla in La Liga last week.

The last time Real Madrid and Barcelona met was in April at the Santiago Bernabéu. That night, Jude Bellingham scored the last-gasp winner to leave Real Madrid within striking distance of their 36th La Liga title. The last time Barça tasted a league victory against Los Blancos was in March 2023, when Franck Kessie scored the winning goal in added time at the Camp Nou.

FURTHER: El Clásico: A Look At The Last 5 La Liga Matches Between Real Madrid And Barcelona