Before the first El Clásico of the season: who is in what condition?

Before the season's first Clasico: Who is in what condition?

Despite the defeat to PSG, Barcelona still remains a terrifying opponent. There is no other team in La Liga that shows such entertaining play. Everything is under control in the Champions League as well. Prior to the game against PSG, the Catalans scored a total of nine goals against Feyenoord and Galatasaray in the first two rounds.

Meanwhile, Mourinho's Real Madrid has not yet built its game. Although the team has gone without losses in the UCL so far, it found itself in a difficult situation against Roma and only turned defeat into victory thanks to a late comeback. In La Liga, they have already lost to Betis and Atletico. In the match in Seville, the Madrid team could have escaped defeat (Carlos Espi's super goal was disallowed, Kylian Mbappe missed a penalty), while in the derby they simply lacked the strength against their opponent. Antonio Rüdiger's goal at the end of the game practically changed nothing.

Now the Clasico lies ahead. If Barcelona wins, it will extend the gap with Real Madrid to nine points, which is a lot. If Real Madrid takes the victory, then an intrigue will arise in the title race. At the same time, a draw could also be recorded ahead of the Clasico, which would play into the hands of Atletico, currently situated between these two teams in the tournament table.

At the start of the season, Barcelona gives the impression of being stronger than Real Madrid. Furthermore, Camp Nou will host the first Clasico of this season. Hans-Dieter Flick's side approaches this match as the favorite. There are not a few who predict that the Madrid side will suffer a heavy defeat in this game.

However, there are several factors working in Real Madrid's favor. This does not automatically mean Real Madrid will win; anything can happen in the game. Nevertheless, viewing Jose Mourinho's team as a clear underdog and expecting its heavy defeat is shortsighted, to say the least.

The first factor working in Real Madrid's favor is Jose himself. This will be his first Clasico since returning to the Madrid club, and there is no doubt he is hungry for such matches. One can talk as much as one wants about Mourinho's tactical methods being outdated and him falling behind trends. To a certain extent, that is a correct opinion. But he still knows how to prepare a team for a specific big game. He has always done this well, and he certainly hasn't forgotten it now.