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Hansi Flick’s men suffered their first disappointment of the campaign on Tuesday evening, losing 4-2 to Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain in a pulsating tie at the Parc des Princes.
However, that result won’t undermine the confidence of a swashbuckling Barcelona outfit, who continue to blow away opponents with unnerving regularity. The Catalans have netted four or more goals in eight of their 12 fixtures across all competitions this term, while still managing to maintain a solid defensive record.
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Real Madrid have also been productive in the final third over the past couple of months, resulting in them occupying second place in the LaLiga scoring charts. Almost half of their 23 league goals have come courtesy of star striker Kylian Mbappé, who bagged a brace against Sevilla in Madrid’s most recent domestic encounter.
It seems José Mourinho is beginning to work his magic, as he navigates the early stages of his second spell at the Bernabéu. The Portuguese tactician has watched his team score four times in all but one of their fixtures since returning from the international break, with a 1-0 home triumph over Villarreal being the only exception.
Despite this, Los Blancos find themselves a long distance away from league leaders Barcelona and one point behind cross-city foes Atlético Madrid, who have an opportunity to extend their advantage in second place when they host Deportivo La Coruña on Saturday.
Live coverage of this season’s first El Clásico will be provided by Premier Sports, the home of Spanish football in the United Kingdom.
Barcelona vs Real Madrid: Key information
Date: Sunday, October 25th
Kick-off: 20:00 (GMT)
Venue: Camp Nou, Barcelona
Referee: Javier Alberola Rojas
TV Channels/Live stream: Premier Sports 1, Premier Sports Player
Odds: Barcelona: 8/13, Draw: 19/4, Real Madrid: 29/10
Odds provided by bet365
Barcelona team news
It’s been a busy week for Barcelona’s medical staff, thanks to several players sustaining injuries during last Saturday’s trip to Andalusia.
No less than three defenders picked up issues at the Estadio La Cartuja, as the visitors recorded an impressive 5-2 win over high-flying Real Betis. Jules Koundé and Gerard Martín both suffered ankle sprains, although it appears the latter is fit enough to feature against Real Madrid.
Having replaced the crocked Martín at the interval, Eric García – still adorning a face mask following an accidental collision with teammate Rodri – doubled his team’s advantage midway through the second half. However, the Catalan failed to last the duration after straining his thigh late on.
With Andreas Christensen also unavailable, Flick is limited on options at the back. That should pave the way for Xavi Espart to make a maiden El Clásico appearance and enable João Cancelo to register just his third league start of the campaign.
Dani Olmo suffered a groin strain in Paris on Tuesday evening, while Roony Bardghji is still in the early stages of recovery after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament during the summer.
Despite only experiencing 20 minutes of game time across Barça’s last two LaLiga fixtures due to a hamstring complaint, Raphinha remains the division’s top scorer with a staggering 12 goals in eight appearances. The Brazilian’s exploits have been somewhat overshadowed by the scintillating form of Lamine Yamal, who racked up his 20th direct goal involvement of the season in midweek.
Barcelona predicted lineup vs Real Madrid (4-2-3-1)
Coach: Hansi Flick
Joan García (GK); Xavi Espart, Pau Cubarsí, Gerard Martín, João Cancelo; Rodri, Pedri; Lamine Yamal, Fermín López, Anthony Gordon; Raphinha
Real Madrid team news
Unlike his managerial counterpart, José Mourinho doesn’t have any fresh injury concerns following a busy fortnight of domestic and European action. However, Real Madrid are still without the services of several key first-team players.
There’s been no further clarity regarding Rodrygo’s current condition, as the versatile attacker continues his rehabilitation from a ruptured Achilles tendon. It’s a similar story for Ferland Mendy, who has spent an enormous amount of time on the treatment table over the past few years. The French full-back is nursing the latest of a long list of muscle problems, although he is hopeful of returning before the end of 2026.
Having been sidelined since the closing stages of last season, Éder Militão was introduced as a late substitute during last Sunday's 4-1 triumph over Sevilla. The experienced central defender didn't feature against RB Leipzig in midweek, but could be involved at some stage at the Camp Nou.
Raúl Asencio has recently gone under the knife as a result of suffering a stress fracture in his right tibia, amidst a difficult few months for the 23-year-old defender. After a quad issue limited his contribution at the beginning of the season, he was found guilty of a drink-driving offence committed in his native Gran Canaria.
Meanwhile, Vinícius Júnior serves the second instalment of a four-match suspension following his unsavoury antics against Villarreal. A tug on Nathan Saliba’s hair in the build-up to his disallowed goal was enough to warrant a straight red card, but the Brazilian’s punishment was upgraded from a two-game ban as a result of his animated reaction towards referee Isidro Díaz de Mera Escuderos.
Real Madrid predicted lineup vs. Barcelona (4-2-3-1)
Coach: José Mourinho
Thibaut Courtois (GK); Federico Valverde, Ibrahima Konaté, Antonio Rüdiger, Marc Cucurella; Bernardo Silva, Aurélien Tchouaméni; Arda Güler, Jude Bellingham, Yan Diomandé; Kylian Mbappé
Where to watch on TV or live stream?
In the summer of 2025, Premier Sports agreed a three-year extension to their broadcasting contract with LaLiga. That enabled the pay-per-view platform to screen over 340 Spanish top-flight matches each season, through until the end of the 2028/29 campaign.
This weekend’s El Clásico will be televised exclusively live on Premier Sports 1, while online viewers can follow events at the Camp Nou via the Premier Sports Player. Those who have purchased a Premier Sports package through Sky can access the match on channel 419, while equivalent Virgin customers should tune into channel 551.
Ahead of kick-off in Barcelona, Premier Sports will show three of Sunday’s other LaLiga clashes. On Premier Sports 2, Bilbao welcome Getafe to the San Mamés before Celta Vigo and Real Betis lock horns in Galicia.
Head-to-head record
Barcelona have won each of their last two home league fixtures against Real Madrid, so unsurprisingly head into the weekend as favourites. The Blaugrana have only triumphed in three consecutive Catalonia-based El Clásicos on one previous occasion in the 21st century, achieving this feat between 2008 and 2010 while under the stewardship of Pep Guardiola.
However, Real Madrid also have cause for optimism. Despite those recent two defeats, the 36-time champions have secured maximum points in three of their last six away league meetings with Barça, matching the number of victories they managed across their 16 previous visits to the Camp Nou.
Prior to Barcelona’s recent sequence of results, only one team in history had commenced a Spanish top-flight campaign with nine consecutive triumphs. This particular record was established almost six decades ago, as Miguel Muñoz’s legendary Real Madrid side navigated their way to the 1968/69 LaLiga title.
With an eight-point gap having already emerged between Sunday’s opponents, Real Madrid are in extremely unfamiliar territory. Los Blancos haven’t been as far behind the league leaders at this early stage since the 2012/13 campaign, when Barcelona went on to accrue a record-equalling 100 points (incidentally set by Real Madrid the season prior) en route to a 60th domestic crown.
Barcelona vs Real Madrid: Betting odds
The odds, correct at the time of publication, are subject to change. All odds provided by bet365.
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