Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid: Ronaldo Scores Clasico Winner

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Final Score, Cristiano Ronaldo Finally A Madrid Hero

Real Madrid have one hand on the La Liga trophy after their performance at the Camp Nou on Saturday afternoon. They haven't been able to get a good result against Barcelona at their own stadium in the league since Pep Guardiola took over the Blaugrana, but they've pulled off a spectacular result away from home, winning 2-1 to go seven points clear of their rivals at the top of the table.

Sami Khedira scored the opening goal just 17 minutes in, tapping in a simple one after a corner kick. Pepe created the chance by beating Adriano in the air, nodding the ball down towards the goal. Victor Valdes got his hand to the ball, but should have been able to hold on or get the ball away from a dangerous area. He did neither and the ball fell to Khedira for an easy finish.

Iker Casillas had terrific command of his area in the first half, but didn't actually have a recorded save on the box score. Still, even though Casillas deserves credit for his great play, the Blaugrana looked completely out of sorts in the first 45 minutes and never really looked like they were going to score.

Things didn't look any better for Barcelona at the beginning of the second half. Christian Tello -- a surprise starter over all of Pedro Rodriguez, Cesc Fabregas and Isaac Cuenca -- had two terrible back to back sitters in a 90 second period. The second was set up by Thiago Alcantara with a terrific through ball, but the shot was so bad that words hardly do it justice. He couldn't have pulled off a worse miss if he tried.

Barcelona didn't have another great chance until the 68th minute, when Xavi ripped a 20-yard shot just wide of Casillas' far post. That would be the last kick of the ball for the little playmaker, who was subbed off for Alexis Sanchez. Incredibly, it would take just one minute for Sanchez to have a major impact on the game.

Lionel Messi did most of the work to set up Barca's 70th minute equalizer, though he was a few steps removed from the actual finish. He started the move with a great dribbling run, then a ball out wide to Tello. He took a shot and hit the target this time, but Casillas made a save. The ball fell to Adriano who cent the ball back in, and Sanchez eventually applied the finish in bizarre fashion, putting it in with his chest after a bit of a scramble.

In past Clasicos, this would have been the beginning of the end for Real Madrid, who have not reacted well to Barcelona breaking through their defense. Instead, Madrid responded this time around, scoring the winner just two minutes later. Appropriately, the man who responded was the man who has been on the brunt of all of the criticism each time Madrid has lost to their most hated rivals, Cristiano Ronaldo.

Mesut Özil set him up with an absolutely stunning pass, but Ronaldo did most of the work. He showed absolutely remarkable pace to blow by Barcelona's defense while easily keeping the ball under control, then placing a fantastic narrow angle finish past Victor Valdes. It was the second time in the game where Valdes should have done much better, and his poor goalkeeping helped lead to a Madrid goal, but there's no taking away from Ronaldo or Özil on this goal. It was brilliant.

Both teams will have to quickly move on from this game and focus on Champions League, but Jose Mourinho might let his team celebrate just a little bit tonight. They were the better side than Barcelona, despite what the possession and passing numbers suggest, and they're well on their way to capturing a well deserved La Liga title.

You can find all of our previous game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Benzema Wastes Chance To Make It 3-1

Real Madrid will be pretty happy with their 2-1 lead but it could easily have been 3-1 if not for some really shoddy play from Karim Benzema. The hosts press forward, which leaves plenty of gaps in their back line, and Madrid pounce, with Fabio Coentrao launching a four on three counterattack. Eventually the ball finds Benzema, who has two legitimate options with Mesut Ozil to his right and Cristiano Ronaldo to his left. He opts to go with neither and blasts straight at Victor Valdes from the edge of the box. That was pretty silly.

Speaking of silly, Javier Mascherano's just decided to go for glory from about forty yards. Guess how that went? Barcelona are clearly pretty desperate now - we don't often see their centre backs taking pot-shots from absurd range. Five minutes left, and as it stands the title race is essentially over.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Cristiano Ronaldo Reestablishes Real Lead

Real Madrid respond to being pegged back to 1-1 by... scoring instantly. That's certainly something. Mesut Ozil roams down the right flank and spots the central run of Cristiano Ronaldo, laying in a perfect path for the Portuguese. Ronaldo takes it perfectly, rounding Victor Valdes before slotting in from an acute angle to reestablish the visitors' lead.

And now things are kicking off. Ronaldo's penalised for an imaginary foul on Dani Alves before acting like he'd been shot in the chest in an obvious attempt to get the right back booked. A few minutes later, Ozil is booked for timewasting as he gets prepared to take a corner kick. Then Estaban Granero picks up a booking for fouling Lionel Messi. The resulting free kick looks pretty interesting, but is ultimately cleared out for a corner, from which Real Madrid win a free kick. It's 2-1 to the visitors with ten minutes left.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Sanchez Makes It 1-1

And then Pep Guardiola makes a change and Barcelona equalise. Xavi Hernandez is hauled off for Alexis Sanchez, and it's the Chilean who scores to bring his side level. Andres Iniesta burst through the centre and manages to get the ball to Cristian Tello before he's brought down. Tello's shot is blocked off by Iker Casillias, but the rebound falls to Adriano at the edge of the box, and his drive is met by Sanchez.

Sanchez's initial shot is saved in phenomenal fashion by Casillas, who essentially claws the ball off the line, but the rebound falls right back to the to substitute and he's able to turn the ball in at the second attempt. That makes things very interesting indeed. How will Real Madrid react to that one? Er... hang on a minute...

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Visitors Wasting Time

So this game is getting very boring. Two Real Madrid players have had long spells on the ground after rather innocuous-looking fouls as the visitors look to waste some time. You can't really blame them, of course - wasting time is what you do when you're looking at a 1-0 lead at the Camp Nou.

Barcelona, meanwhile, look fairly flustered. They're being marshalled into relatively harmless areas and their passing is nothing like as crisp as usual, giving the ball away far too easily. Unless we get a major improvement in the hosts' movement around the box, I just can't see anyone scoring again.

A little while later, Fabio Coentrao takes a Dani Alves cross to the face and goes down for a bit of a nap. The trainers are on the pitch and a stretcher comes out for the fullback, which ends up being driven around in circles around him. Odd. The corner, by the way, comes to exactly nothing.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Tello Blows Clear Chance

Good grief that's appalling from Cristian Tello. A few minutes after wasting a clear chance, he puts in an even worse shot from an even better chance. Thiago Alcantara, who's been pretty quiet today, slips Tello through on goal, and he has plenty of time to steady himself and slip past Iker Casillas. Instead he hits the ball first time and belts his shot into row Z. Does he realise that Barcelona are losing here? That was pathetic.

That said, Barcelona are enjoying a spell of pressure here and it wouldn't be a huge shock if one of their attacks was able to break down Real Madrid before this game is up. They're going to have to be a little bit more direct, though - they have half an hour to get a goal or see their dreams of retaining the title go up in smoke.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: End To End Stuff At The Camp Nou

This really is as bad as I've seen Andres Iniesta play. The little midfielder is usually one of Barcelona's best players - i.e. one of the world's best players - but he's had a pretty miserable time of things today. Not for the first time, the industrious Angel di Maria catches Iniesta in possession and the former Benfica man goes scampering down the touchline before his opponents' attempt at a covering tackle results in a foul. Eventually said foul leads to a Real Madrid corner kick, which is how they scored the game's only goal, but this time Mesit Ozil's delivery is really rather poor and the cross is cut out.

At the other end of the pitch, Cristian Tello is slipped in and the situation looks promising enough - plenty of Barcelona bodies are in the box for a cutback, but the youngster opts to blast over the bar from an impossible angle rather than pass. That's... unusual. Real Madrid respond by putting the ball into the back of the net, but Cristiano Ronaldo was about half a yard offside when he ran onto Karim Benzema's through ball, and the hosts escape.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: 2nd Half Underway

We're up and running the second half at the Camp Nou, where Barcelona find themselves trailing against Real Madrid. The visitors went up 1-0 on a 17th minute goal from Sami Khedira, and they haven't really looked back. The hosts are looking off, and they'll have to put in a much better performance to overhaul their opponents here - it's a must-win game for them and they haven't played like it at all.

The first team with any sort of chance in the second half is Real Madrid, who manage to mess up a three on two counterattack in rather amusing fashion, getting their passing and runs all wrong and presenting the Barcelona defence with the ball. In response, the hosts give said ball to Lionel Messi and have him do his thing, a foray forward that's eventually curtailed by an important intervention from Mesut Ozil.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Halftime Score, Khedira Has Madrid Ahead

UPDATE: Real Madrid 2-1 FC Barcelona, Final Score

Real Madrid are 45 minutes away from virtually locking up the La Liga title. Thanks to some poor set piece defending and goalkeeping by Barcelona, Los Blancos lead 1-0 at halftime at Camp Nou. Sami Khedira applied the finish, but Pepe did the real work to win the ball in the air and cause the scramble in the box. Madrid haven't had much in the way of possession, but Barcelona's possession has created virtually nothing in the way of chances.

The goal came 17 minutes in and Pepe's setup was excellent. He beat Adriano badly when he rose up to meet the ball, and it's fair to question why Adriano was the man marking Real Madrid's best aerial threat. Victor Valdes couldn't hold on to the ball and no one could clear before Khedira applied the finish.

Barcelona don't have a shot on target in the box score, but they've come close with a couple of great chances. Iker Casillas has been brilliant so far, arguably the man of the match. He rushed out to grab the ball from Dani Alves on a breakaway run in the 5th minute, then later got in front of a shot by Xavi in the 27th minute and barely touched the ball wide of the far post.

For what seems like the first time ever in a huge game under Pep Guardiola, Barcelona looked panicked and impatient in the first half. They're going to have to settle down and start playing their regular game in the second half. A draw is a good result for Madrid, so Jose Mourinho might consider making a defensive change sooner rather than later.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Hosts Being Kept Quiet

Barcelona are trying to recover from their one goal deficit against Real Madrid, but they're really not looking as snappy as usual. Real Madrid are having a pretty easy time of things whenever Lionel Messi isn't on the ball - the rest of the home side are busy taking poor touches or giving the ball away for no apparent reason. We're most of the way through the first half now, and we haven't seen anything like the Catalans at their very best.

Considering it's crunch time in terms of the title race, you'd have thought that Pep Guardiola's side would be a little bit more up for this one. Their opponents certainly are, and it's no easy feat to keep even an off-colour Barcelona side this quiet for forty minutes. Sure, Iker Casillas has been called into action twice, but you could probably say that the visitors have been the better side so far. That's pretty weird.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Casillas Saves From Xavi

Goodness me, that should have been the equaliser. Lionel Messi slips Xavi clean through - Pepe was playing the midfielder onside, and Xavi had all the time in the world to pick his spot. He aims for Iker Casillas' far post, but the goalkeeper is able to get the very faintest of touches to divert the ball inches wide. Weirdly, Real Madrid are awarded a goal kick.

At any rate, that's the second time that Casillas has saved the day for Real Madrid - Barcelona have come close via both Xavi and Dani Alves, but Saint Iker has been equal to both challenges. Messi is going to do his best to ensure that the goalkeeper has plenty more work to do though. He's looking in something of a mood after being shut down against Chelsea.

Madrid are still doing some attacking, of course, but they're snatching at chances rather than building up play. Cristiano Ronaldo has just blazed well wide of goal with a strange long-range attempt, but hey, they're in the lead. They can probably do what they like.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Xabi Alonso Booked

So how will Barcelona respond to going behind to their archrivals in El Clasico? From this evidence, they're going all out to get the goal back. They've had a lot of the ball since Sami Khedira's goal, and Lionel Messi's at the centre of it all. Unfortunately for the hosts, the rest of the team seems a little bit off. Andres Iniesta looks like he's getting ready for a run clear through on goal, but when Messi picks him out with a brilliant pass Iniesta lets the ball bounce off his foot, enabling Real Madrid to scramble clear.

Meanwhile, Xabi Alonso has made his mark on the game by coming in fairly late on Dani Alves, who is writhing around in pain Didier Drogba style as a result. The Real midfielder picks up a booking for his troubles, joining Sergio Busquets in the referee's naughty list. Nothing comes of the free kick.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Sami Khedira Gives Real The Lead

Well that's something. Real Madrid take the lead against Barcelona at the Camp Nou, and it's from a corner. A really strange corner. Mesut Ozil launches the ball to the far post, where Pepe is being 'marked' by Adriano, which goes about as well as you'd expect. Victor Valdes hurls himself to his left to block the initial shot, but can't prevent a rebound, which falls to Carles Puyol. That's Barcelona centre half Carles Puyol.

The ball was basically on the line, but the captain had plenty of time to clear and the threat should have been over. Instead, he missed his kick entirely and saw the ball basically tackled into the goal by Sami Khedira to make it 1-0. That was a really really weird goal, but full credit to Real Madrid for a well-worked set piece. As things stand (and we're only twenty minutes in, so things are likely to change), the visitors will open a seven point cushion at the top of the league.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Real Madrid Pressure

Lionel Messi, who's been pretty quiet so far, tries to race down the centre of the pitch, but his run is brought to a crunching halt by Sergio Ramos, who puts in a fine tackle and launches a counterattack in the process. It looks like the ball's going to roll through to Karim Benzema at the top of the box, but Sergio Busquets saves the day with a last-ditch interception.

Andres Iniesta contrives to launch the next Real Madrid attack with an incredibly poor pass in the middle, setting off a passage of play that ends up with Benzema shooting from just outside the area and forcing Victor Valdes into a pretty routine save. It's back and forth stuff, quite good football so far, and we haven't had too much crankiness as of yet. Oh, and Barcelona have had a goal rightly disallowed for offside. It wasn't very close.

A few minutes later, Busquets is booked for hacking down Cristiano Ronaldo on the Real Madrid left. Naughty foul, but probably worth it to stop the Portuguese from pushing down that flank. Fifteen minutes in and it's still 0-0.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Chances At Both Ends

That's the first corner of the match, and it goes to Real Madrid after Carles Puyol's forced into a tackle on Cristiano Ronaldo on the Barcelona right. Mesut Ozil swings the ball in and Ronaldo flicks it goalwards, forcing Victor Valdes into a lovely fingertip save. The second corner is aimed at Pepe's head, and his header is far less useful.

That was a great sign for the visitors, but within two minutes Barcelona had a great chance. A horrible pass from Pepe to Sergio Ramos is intercepted by Dani Alves, but Iker Casillas is out like a flash and smothers the ball before the fullback get around him. That was desperately close to a goal for Barcelona - I have no idea what on earth Pepe was thinking in playing that ball, but brilliant goalkeeping from Casillas saves the day.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Match Underway

We're underway at the Camp Nou, where Barcelona are hosting Real Madrid in the sixth Clasico of the season. With the situation at the top of La Liga firmly in the visitors' favour, this represents Barcelona's best chance to get back into the title race. A win here for the home side would make the remainder of the season very, very interesting.

Anyway, Real Madrid have kicked us off, giving the ball away at basically the first opportunity. Incredibly, Barcelona give the ball straight back to the visitors, forcing Carles Puyol into a neat piece of work at the edge of his area. The Catalans are able to push upfield, and win a pair of free kicks in the centre circle. Not much going on yet, but we've only had a few minutes of play - about the most interesting thing that's happened is a long pass from Andres Iniesta that went flying out of play for a goal kick.

We have live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Lineups

Barcelona have made a couple of surprising decisions for El Clasico, sitting down both of Cesc Fabregas and Pedro Rodriguez. Instead, Christian Tello and Thiago Alcantara will start against Real Madrid. Girard Pique is apparently still not fit to start, and Adriano starts at left back with Carles Puyol and Javier Mascherano in the middle. Jose Mourinho has opted for Mesut Özil ahead of Kaka and Fabio Coentrao ahead of Marcelo.

Barcelona lineup (4-3-3): Victor Valdes; Adriano, Carles Puyol, Javier Mascherano, Daniel Alves; Sergio Busquets, Xavi Hernandez, Thiago Alcantara; Andres Iniesta, Lionel Messi, Christian Tello

Bench: Jose Manuel Pinto, Girard Pique, Seydou Keita, Cesc Fabregas, Alexis Sanchez, Pedro Rodriguez, Martin Montoya

Real Madrid lineup (4-2-3-1): Iker Casillas; Fabio Coentrao, Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Alvaro Arbeloa; Xabi Alonso, Sami Khedira; Cristiano Ronaldo, Mesut Özil, Angel Di Maria; Karim Benzema

Bench: Antonio Adan, Kaka, Esteban Granero, Marcelo, Raul Albiol, Gonzalo Higuain, Jose Maria Callejon

Kickoff is at 2:00 p.m. ET, 8:00 p.m. local time from Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. You can catch the game on any of GolTV, ESPN3 and ESPN Deportes in the USA. It's also on GolTV in Canada and Sky Sports 1 in the UK.

We'll have pre-game and live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Cristiano Ronaldo's Legacy Will Eventually Be Damaged

Cristiano Ronaldo is only 27 years old. He has 139 goals in 138 games for Real Madrid. He has won the Premier League, Champions League, Copa Del Rey and Ballon d'Or. He is without question one of the greatest footballers to ever live. And he can't beat Barcelona.

He did it once, in last season's Copa Del Rey final. His headed goal in extra time beat Barcelona, and at that time, it seemed like he was going to get the monkey off his back. Instead, his struggles against Barcelona got worse in the Clasicos after that game. Things hit a low point during the first league meeting between the two teams this season.

Real Madrid took the lead 23 seconds into the first Clasico and would not score again. Just before the half hour mark, Ronaldo missed an absolute sitter that would have doubled Madrid's lead, and that was followed by an Alexis Sanchez equalizer less than 60 seconds later. Barcelona would go on to take a 2-1 lead, but Ronaldo had a chance in the equalizer in the 65th minute. Again, he missed a sitter. Again, less than 60 seconds later, Barcelona scored.

Football might be the world's ultimate team sport, in which one player cannot be the reason for a win or a loss, but Ronaldo came incredibly close to being solely at fault for Madrid's loss to Barcelona in December. It was arguably the low point of his career. He had a chance to put his team up 2-0, then a later chance to equalize when his team trailed 2-1, and he inexplicably failed to finish both of them. It was hardly the first time that Ronaldo seemed to simply forget how to score against Barcelona.

This game probably won't define the legacy of Cristiano Ronaldo, but eventually, a Clasico is going to define his legacy one way or another. Either he's going to put in a man of the match performance in a late league or Champions League Clasico or he's going to come up short in the final one he plays in.

It's unfair to judge a player -- especially one as incredible as Ronaldo -- by his performances against one team, but he knew what he was getting into. He knew when he came to form the second iteration of the Galacticos that he would be expected to lead Los Merengues to big victories against Barcelona, and it hasn't happened yet. He is continuously overshadowed by Lionel Messi, a man who he has outplayed this season outside of the Clasicos between the two teams.

Everyone is going to talk about this until Ronaldo outplays Messi to win La Liga or the Champions League. He has a chance to shut everyone up forever on Saturday.

We'll have pre-game and live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Los Merengues Are Going To Win La Liga

It's fun to hype up El Clasico. Two teams, both of which are among the best in the world, playing each other as the clear top two in La Liga. There are also the political and cultural differences, making it really ease to act like it is the biggest match in the world that both teams are highly dependent on for their success. Unfortunately, that is not the case this time around because no matter the result on Saturday, Real Madrid will edge out Barcelona for the La Liga title.

Even if Barcelona beat Madrid at the Camp Nou, they will still trail their rivals by a point in the league with just four matches remaining. Neither team has an especially difficult schedule down the stretch either, with Madrid having to play Athletic Bilbao and Sevilla and Barcelona squaring off against Malaga as their toughest opponents. Barcelona may have a bit of an edge there, but not a big one. Although Madrid do have two tough matches to Barcelona's one, Malaga is the toughest team of the three, and Athletic have Europa League, weakening their squad ahead of playing Madrid.

More than anything, Barcelona are just too banged up. David Villa isn't going to step on the pitch again this season and neither is Eric Abidal is out. Gerard Pique is dealing with a thigh injury and Alexis Sanchez is also battling injury. There is always concern now that Carles Puyol might strain something as well, putting Barcelona in a precarious position. Madrid have a couple injuries of their own, but none in positions as important as the Catalans' and with Barcelona chasing a point, they don't want to be in the situation of more likely to drop points due to injury, which they appear to be.

Saturday's El Clasico will be brilliant. It could be the best 90 minutes of football we see all season and it will matter a lot for bragging rights, but it will not determine the league champion. That's going to be Real Madrid, regardless of the result of the Camp Nou.

We'll have pre-game and live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Alexis Sanchez Almost Certainly Out

Per the official website of FC Barcelona, winger/forward Alexis Sanchez did not practice with the Barcelona first team on Friday and is "extremely doubtful" for El Clasico against Real Madrid. Sanchez picked up a slight knock in the Champions League match against Chelsea on Wednesday and was expected to be rested even if he did get fit enough to play Saturday's game.

Along with current first-team winger Isaac Cuenca, who was promoted from Barcelona B this season, B-team player Christian Tello trained with Barcelona's first team on Friday. B-team defenders Marc Bartra and Martin Montoya also trained with 18 players from the senior squad. Three of those players will have to be dropped for the matchday squad, assuming Sanchez does not make the bench.

Between Cesc Fabregas, Pedro Rodriguez, Thiago Alcantara, Tello and Cuenca, there should be two spots in Barcelona's starting XI up for grabs.

We'll have pre-game and live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Los Merengues Light On Midfielders

Real Madrid have arrived in Barcelona, and they've arrived there without a couple of their questionable central midfield players. If Jose Mourinho wants to play for a draw against Barcelona in El Clasico and pack the center of midfield, he's going to have to use a makeshift setup. Neither Lassana Diarra or Nuri Sahin made the trip for Real Madrid, so obviously neither of them will be in the 18-man squad.

Madrid are also without defender Ricardo Carvalho as well, so they will not be able to play Pepe as a midfield anchor man, one option that Mourinho has used in the past. If Mourinho feels like he needs a third player deep in the center, his makeshift options are Fabio Coentrao, Esteban Granero and Kaka. Granero -- normally a wide player -- has played in the center recently when Sami Khedira was out with injury, and he performed well in that role.

We'll have pre-game and live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Game Time, TV Schedule And Live Online Stream

The Clasicos between Real Madrid and Barcelona have often kicked off at ludicrously late hours even by the standards of the Spanish in the recent past, but they're taking a slightly different approach on Saturday. Instead of starting at a time that won't allow anyone to get out of the stadium before midnight, this edition of El Clasico is actually being played in primetime. It's available in multiple languages all over the world, and the listings for the United States, Canada and UK can be found below. If you live elsewhere, you can find local listings here.

Barcelona vs. Real Madrid

Game Date/Time: Saturday, April 21, 2:00 p.m. ET, 8:00 p.m. local

Venue: Camp Nou, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

TV: GolTV (USA - English and Canada), ESPN Deportes (USA - Spanish), Sky Sports 1 (UK)

Online: ESPN3

We'll have pre-game and live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: How Does This Affect Mourinho And Guardiola's Futures?

Usually when teams are über successful, their managers get very comfortable, but at Real Madrid, there is never any comfort or stability. Los Merengues win and win and win, and yet managers come and go as quickly as on a team regularly battling relegation. Now, as Madrid get ready to play Barcelona and possibly put a bow on a La Liga title, Jose Mourinho is, like many managers at the Bernabeu before him, with his job status in question.

Ever since Mourinho took the Madrid job prior to last season, there has been speculation as to how long he would stay at the Bernabeu. He has never stayed with any club too long and once he signed on for a club notorious for shuttling managers in and out, it was hard to imagine him being in for the long haul.

Earlier this season, rumors began to fly that Mourinho would leave Madrid after the season. He'd had his fill of Los Merengues and was ready for a new challenge, or so the rumors said. He would win La Liga, besting Barcelona and maybe even capture the Champions League crown. Once again, he would leave another mega club on top with his "Best Manager of the World" title intact.

Lately, the rumors have quieted, but they won't stay away for long. If another high profile job comes up, Mourinho's name will come up once again. He will be linked to a move away from the Bernabeu, but that is only if he bests Barcelona. He will not leave with the club still on Barcelona's heels. Beat the Catalans on Saturday, all but clinching the league, and the path for his exit is there.

Barcelona have no more security in their manager, Pep Guardiola, either. He was rumored to be leaving the club after last season, but he stuck around for one more. If he can beat Madrid, and Mourinho, one more time and take the league, as well as maybe a Champions League title, he can take off on top. Get bested by Madrid and he might be back for one more go around.

We'll have pre-game and live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Isaac Cuenca To Provide Width For Blaugrana?

Every single year, a new star player magically appears at Barcelona, or at least it seems that way to the general public. In reality, La Masia is a player factory, and at any given time, there are a lot of good players in Barcelona's B, C and Under-19 teams. Unless you're a hardcore Cule who spends a lot of time keeping up on the B team, you were probably unfamiliar with Isaac Cuenca until he appeared for Barcelona's first team this season.

Cuenca's last start was two weeks ago against Getafe -- a game in which he recorded an assist -- and he played 45 minutes last week against Levante. He's much more of a true wide player than any of the regular starters for the Blaugrana and he's proven that he can play against top competition, so Pep Guardiola shouldn't have any reservations about putting him into the lineup if he thinks a true wide player is what he needs to exploit Real Madrid's weaknesses.

Alexis Sanchez is doubtful for El Clasico, so FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes is in favor of Cuenca taking the pitch.

In Sanchez' absence, I would love to see a start for Isaac Cuenca in a bid to stretch a Madrid defense that will almost certainly try to narrow the field. Whether he drags Marcelo out wide (the Brazilian does have a tendency to wander after all) or Arbeloa does not matter, so long as that defense is stretched, we can be happy. Not only that, but Cuenca's turn of pace and subsequent delivery could create chances not dissimilar to Messi's goal last season in the UCL, assisted by Ibrahim Afellay. In that sense, Cuenca is a unique player as he can stretch any defense with just a few yards to play with, and create chaos with his final pass, a skill that might be indispensible against a deep-lying Madrid side.

Without Sanchez and David Villa at his disposal, it will be interesting to see if Guardiola opts for Cuenca or some other option in his front three.

We'll have pre-game and live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Kaka Could Be Introduced

Kaka has enjoyed a bit of a career resurgence this season, starting 16 times for Real Madrid in La Liga. He's sat out the last couple of games for Los Merengues as Mesut Özil has played in the No. 10 role Kaka prefers, while Jose Maria Callejon and Gonzalo Higuain also made starts ahead of the Brazilian playmaker.

His form has been solid enough that it seems unlikely that he fell out of favor with Jose Mourinho, so it's possible that he's been saving Kaka for El Clasico against Barcelona.

Mourinho has had some success with playing three deep central midfield players against Barcelona in the past, but he's without Lassana Diarra on Saturday. Additionally, he can't move Pepe up into the midfield because of the absence of Ricardo Carvalho. Though Kaka likes to play high up the pitch, he can play a deeper central midfield role and he's much more competent defensively than Özil. That's why Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid is expecting Kaka to make a start in the Clasico.

Kaka has been rested for the past two games now and has recently shown a lot of effort in chasing the ball. I expect Mourinho to start him in the middle of the field, pushing Özil to the right. Özil has shown to be more effective when he has not been marked by Sergio Busquets where as Kaka has the one on one skills required to get by the Catalan. In addition, Kaka has the passing and work ethic required to retain possession and track back. His tendency to run to the left wing also gives Ronaldo the option to run inside and gives the two an opportunity to double up on Dani Alves. Strengthening the attacking half of the left wing also means that Marcelo's inclusion is not necessary (although it would definitely help Ronaldo), giving Mourinho the chance to choose the more defensive Coentrao.

Real Madrid had some success attacking with their normal 4-2-3-1 setup in the first half of the last league Clasico, but they were figured out by Pep Guardiola and Barcelona in the second half as Özil struggled and was eventually subbed. This time around, Mourinho could (and probably should) have a different plan.

We'll have pre-game and live game coverage in our Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico StoryStream. For more on the two teams, head over to Real Madrid blog Managing Madrid and FC Barcelona blog Barca Blaugranes.

The CRISIS Clasico? No. Better Than That

Both Barcelona and Real Madrid go into the Clasico two games from CRISIS! But that's what grand narratives are made of.

Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2012 El Clasico: Los Blancos Can Virtually Lock Up Title

Barcelona has one last chance to make the La Liga title race interesting when they host Real Madrid in El Clasico on Saturday.

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