Injuries have altered Real Madrid and Barcelona’s regular teams for El Clásico, but they’re still able to field very strong sides, centered around Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi as always.
El Clásico 2016 lineups: Andres Iniesta on Barcelona’s bench, Real Madrid gives Mateo Kovacic big responsibility
Here’s who’s starting for Real Madrid and Barcelona in El Clásico.
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Madrid is the team hit harder by injuries. They’re without Gareth Bale and Toni Kroos, while Casemiro is only fit enough to make the bench. They’ll be depending on Mateo Kovacic -- who spent most of his time as an advanced playmaker before arriving at the Bernabeu -- to have an excellent game defensively. There’s also quite a bit of pressure on Lucas Vázquez, who starts in Bale’s absence.
Andres Iniesta won’t start for the Blaugrana but is available off the bench if Luis Enrique needs a playmaker to change the game. Andre Gomes is the man who takes his spot. And while Gomes has had moments of brilliance, he’s had an inconsistent start to life at the Camp Nou since signing for Barca this summer.
Real Madrid lineup (4-3-3): Keylor Navas; Marcelo, Sergio Ramos, Raphäel Varane, Dani Carvajal; Mateo Kovacic, Luca Modric, Isco; Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Lucas Vázquez
Barcelona lineup (4-3-3): Marc-Andre ter Stegen; Jordi Alba, Javier Mascherano, Gerard Piqué, Sergi Roberto; Sergio Busquets, Ivan Rakitic, Andre Gomes; Neymar, Luis Suárez, Lionel Messi
Kickoff is at 10:15 p.m. ET, 4:15 p.m. local time from Camp Nou in Barcelona. You can catch the game on beIN Sports in the United States.
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