Real Madrid and FC Barcelona contest El Clásico on Sunday and Karim Benzema has been ruled out of the fixture. Real prepare to host Barça as the classic rivals meet for the 184th time in La Liga.
Carlo Ancelotti will be without talisman Benzema after the French attacker picked up a calf injury this week. Benzema, 34, has been Real’s shining light this season with 32 goals in all competitions including a league-high 22 goals. Benzema has also registered 11 assists in La Liga this term, more than any other player.
Karim Benzema will miss Sunday’s El Clasico due to a calf injury ❌ pic.twitter.com/3OlQihMXfi
— GOAL (@goal) March 19, 2022
Since Ronaldo left Madrid in 2018 Benzema has become Real’s main man and their no.9 has netted 25+ goals in four consecutive seasons since Ronaldo’s departure – a feat which Benzema achieved just three times in his first nine seasons in the Spanish capital. Benzema surpassed Alfredo Di Stefano as the club’s 3rd-highest goalscorer of all-time, with Ronaldo (450) and Raúl (323) the only players with more goals for Real than Benzema (311).
Sunday’s derby will be the fourth time that Benzema misses El Clásico, but in spite of his absence Real still possess an array of talent within their ranks. Vinícius Júnior has netted 14 league goals with Benzema the only player to have scored more in this campaign. Marco Asensio has bagged eight league goals while Luka Modric has given five assists and ‘keeper Thibaut Courtois has 12 clean sheets to his name.
Real have a 10-point cushion at the top of La Liga, and a win over Barcelona would take them 15 points clear of their arch rivals and within touching distance of a record 35th league title. Barça, meanwhile, will firmly believe that a second-place finish is firmly within reach although a positive result in the derby will be crucial if they are to finish above the likes of Atlético Madrid and Sevilla.
Despite being a Barcelona player for barely seven weeks, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is already the club’s second-highest goalscorer this season. Aubameyang, 32, has scored seven goals in ten appearances across La Liga and the UEFA Europa League since the Gabonese forward signed from Arsenal on a free transfer at the end of January. Ousmane Dembélé and Jordi Alba each have seven assists in La Liga.
Barça have made terrific progress since manager Xavi took charge, losing just one of 17 league games since the former club captain returned to the Camp Nou. When Ronald Koeman was dismissed at the end of October, Barça occupied 9th place in La Liga with 15 points having taken four wins and three losses from their opening 10 games. Since then, however, they have climbed the standings significantly under the tutelage of Xavi. La Blaugrana have taken 36 points from a possible 51, with ten victories and six draws in 17 league games.
Now, after four months in the job, Xavi visits the Santiago Bernabéu for his first Clásico as manager of his boyhood club. Barça have won seven out of nine league outings this year and have scored 23 times, three more goals than Real have scored in 2022.
Xavi and Barcelona will undeniably be desperate to get one over their arch rivals, especially when considering Real have won all of the last four meetings between the two sides in La Liga. Barça’s visit to the Santiago Bernabéu will be the sixth Clásico since the Catalan club last claimed victory over Real in March 2019. Los Blancos won home and away versus La Blaugrana last season and Ancelotti will be aiming for his troops to replicate this feat come this evening.
Barcelona have been victorious in 72 previous league meetings against Real, who themselves have triumphed over Barça 76 times before. The remaining 35 Clásico’s have ended on level terms.
