Barcelona travel away to Real Madrid for the first leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal on Wednesday, when all eyes will be on Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo at the Santiago Bernabeu. The first edition of El Clasico in 2013 will feature a shorthanded Merengues side, but they'll be determined to get one over on the Cules. Madrid are already out of the La Liga title race, and are almost certainly motivated to salvage something from their poor season by getting one over on their Catalan rivals.
Real Madrid vs. Barcelona: TV schedule and preview for El Clasico
El Clasico is renewed on Wednesday, when Real Madrid host Barcelona in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal.
With the league well in hand, Barcelona have given a number of their players some extra time to recover from nagging fitness issues. Blaugrana manager Tito Vilanova is still away from the team as he undergoes cancer treatment, but Jordi Roura, who is acting as interim manager in Vilanova's absence, has a full side to choose from. Gerard Pique finished serving a suspension over the weekend, while a number of other players are back after some time off due to injuries.
Real Madrid injuries and suspensions
Out: Sergio Ramos (suspended), Angel Di Maria (suspended), Fabio Coentrao (suspended), Pepe (ankle), Iker Casillas (wrist).
Barcelona injuries and suspensions
Out: Eric Abidal (liver), Isaac Cuenca, Christian Tello, Martin Montoya (manager's choice).
Carles Puyol is back from injury and has traveled to Madrid with his teammates. He's expected to start. Madrid have some serious selection dilemmas on their hands.
Match date/time: Wednesday, 9 p.m. local, 3 p.m. ET
Venue: Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain
TV: beIN Sport (U.S.), Sky Sports 3 (U.K.), Canal+ 1 (Spain)
For more on El Clasico, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.
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