All of Spain will be watching Camp Nou on Sunday as FC Barcelona and Real Madrid meet in the latest edition of El Clásico. This match, like many before it, features the top two teams in the league.
Barça sit a point behind Madrid in the standings, but they were held to a 1-1 draw by Athletic Bilbao last weekend, and that allowed Madrid to creep past them on the league ladder. They also beat Inter Milan 2-0 in the Champions League this past Tuesday.
Madrid have won their last three La Liga matches, including last weekend's narrow 1-0 victory over Racing Santander. They also beat FC Zürich by the same score in Wednesday's Champions League game. They will seek revenge on Barcelona, who beat them on both occasions last season.
For the Blaugrana, both Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Lionel Messi have been battling injury knocks this week. Both, however, should go from the start on Sunday. Yaya Touré, who missed last week with swine flu, is fit but will not start.
The biggest injury news in this game is that Cristiano Ronaldo is set to play from the start after playing 20 minutes in the Champions League on Wednesday. Raúl Albiol will face a late fitness test, and Ezequiel Garay will be prepared to deputize in central defense if he cannot go.
Both sides are healthy, and this is a tantalizing affair for football fans everywhere. Barcelona will be favored at home, and should be able to control in midfield and get more chances. Madrid's sometime-suspect defense could haunt them here.
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