Madrid: Barcelona would look to extend their perfect start to the La Liga season and open a nine-point lead over Real Madrid when the two Spanish giants meet in the season’s first Clasico at Camp Nou in Barcelona on Sunday.
Hansi Flick’s side has won all nine of its opening league matches to establish a six-point advantage over their archrivals, with Atletico Madrid sitting second, five points off the pace. Although nearly three-quarters of the campaign would remain after Sunday, another Barcelona victory would leave Real Madrid facing a considerable challenge to close the gap in the title race.
Real Madrid head into the match in improved form after recording successive 4-1 home victories over Sevilla in La Liga and RB Leipzig in the Champions League. Fede Valverde has impressed in an unfamiliar right-back role, while Kylian Mbappe has rediscovered his best form and new signing Yan Diomande has shown flashes of his potential.
Diomande is expected to start on Sunday, with Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho likely to favour a compact defensive approach designed to exploit Barcelona’s vulnerabilities on the counterattack.
Barcelona, meanwhile, are looking to recover from their first defeat of the season after losing 4-2 away to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League on Tuesday. Flick remains without injured trio Eric Garcia, Andreas Christensen and Dani Olmo, although Rodri could return to the starting lineup after playing just over half an hour against PSG.
Atletico Madrid would be watching Sunday’s encounter closely, with Diego Simeone’s side able to move within two points of Barcelona with victory at home over Deportivo on Saturday.
Ademola Lookman and Lee Kang-in are expected to feature in Atletico’s starting lineup as the club looks to maintain pressure on the league leader. Real Betis visit Celta Vigo on Sunday seeking to bounce back from last weekend’s 5-2 defeat to Barcelona.
Betis impressed before Facundo Bernal was sent off, but the Uruguayan midfielder will begin a four-match suspension against Celta, while striker Cucho Hernandez remains sidelined through injury.
Valencia host Villarreal in an east-coast derby at Mestalla, with the home side second from bottom despite consecutive draws under new coach Javier Aguirre. Villarreal arrive after narrow defeats to Real Madrid and Liverpool, although Inigo Perez’s side produced encouraging performances in both matches.
The round opens on Friday when winless Malaga visit Deportivo Alaves, which have taken just one point from their last-five matches following a promising start to the campaign. Rayo Vallecano host Elche at Vallecas, where protests against club president Raul Martin Presa forced the suspension of Rayo’s previous home fixture.
Espanyol coach Manolo Gonzalez faces mounting pressure ahead of his team’s visit to Racing Santander, with both sides having collected just one point from their last four matches.
Athletic Club host Getafe amid a goalscoring crisis. The Basque side will also be without defender Aymeric Laporte, who is suspended after being sent off against Levante on Wednesday.
Levante, meanwhile, travel to face a Real Sociedad side that has climbed to fifth place following three consecutive league victories. However, La Real must first negotiate a Europa League fixture in Norway on Thursday. The round concludes on Monday when Sevilla host Osasuna. IANS
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