Tonight at the Bernabeu, the table tightens the screws again. Real Madrid start as the table toppers with two points clear of their arch-rivals. Barcelona arrive wounded but defiant; their injury list is long, yet their young spear, Lamine Yamal, is rearing to go. The winner just does not pick up three points; they become the table toppers and take the bragging rights.

Real Madrid vs Barcelona: Probable starting Line-ups

Real Madrid (4-1-2-3):

• GK – Thibaut Cortouis
• Def – Valverde, Eder Militao, Dean Huijsen, Alvaro Carreras
• Mid – Tchouameni, Jude Bellingham, Arda Guler
• That – Vinicius Jr., Mbappe, Mastantuono

Barcelona (4-3-3):

• GK – Wojciech Szczęsny
• Def- Kounde, Cubrasi, Araujo, Balde
• Mid – De Jong, Pedri, Fermin
• At – Lamine Yamal, Rashford, Torres

Real Madrid vs Barcelona: Strengths

Real Madrid – The sharpest blade is the left channel. Vinicius and Mbappe keep swapping lanes, one on the paint, one in the half-space, until the right of Barca’s back four is dragged into bad decisions. Bellingham’s late arrivals complete the triangle; if the cut-back does not finish the move, second balls around the ‘golden U’ do. With Guler in the midfield, Madrid also gains a clearer final pass through the inside-right pocket, which forces Barcelona to defend both half-spaces.

Barcelona: The clearest route is Yamal in isolation. Give him 1v1 at the RB-RCB seam and let Ferran attack the far-post channel. When Pedri and De Jon rotate 6/8 to dodge the first press, they spring third-man runs that turn medium-threat possessions into quick entries. Add Balde’s recovery pace, and you have counter-pressure that can punish eager Madrid full-backs.

Tactical levers that might decide the game

1. Madrid’s left vs Barca’s right: Expect Mbappe to drift left and dovetail with Vini; Bellingham arrives inside-left. The antidote for Barca is structural, keeping Kounde narrower, the near-side interior screening Bellingham, and the winger tracking Carreras’ underlap. If Barcelona don’t get those three pieces right, they will be in trouble.
2. Yamal vs rest-defence: With Valverde at RB, Madrid gain athleticism on the Yamal side but lose delivery. The key for them would be shape; when Valverde pushes, Tchouameni needs to drop to build a 2-3 rest-defence with the CBs and the weak-side 8 ready to kill the first outlet into Pedri. If that first pass is blocked, Yamal’s supply chain would stutter.
3. The 6 vs the 10s: Tchouameni anchoring allows Bellingham and Guler to play high between the lines. That pins Barca’s back and forces Ferran to receive with defenders set. Flip it and Barcelona’s best sequences come when de Jon drags the press then releases early to the right, letting Yamal attack before Madrid are settled.

Prediction

If Madrid protects the Yama lane and keeps the Vini-Mbappe carousel spinning, they will create the game’s higher quality looks. Guler’s presence adds one more clean pass into the kill zone. Valverde at RB keeps the right side honest. This being a home game for them, Real Madrid has the edge, and we can expect a 2-1 result in their favour.