GAR-D OF HONOUR
REAL MADRID travel to Barcelona tonight for a rearranged El Clasico that should feature Gareth Bale.
The winger cut a frustrated figure when starting on the bench for the weekend draw at Valencia but is in contention at the Camp Nou.
4
Aside from the incredible form of Karim Benzema, Zinedine Zidane hasn't got his attack firing recently and is likely to consider changes, at the expense of teenager Rodrygo Goes and Isco.
The coach declared before the 7pm kick-off: "Bale is with us, he is training well.
"He is an important player, he has always proved it. [On Wednesday] he will be prepared like everyone else, I have no doubt."
Bale and Vinicius are both raring to be unleashed from the start in Barcelona with Los Blancos also facing a big decision in midfield.
The experienced trio of Toni Kroos, Luka Modric and Casemiro has been gatecrashed by 21-year-old Uruguayan Fede Valverde.
In the form of his life, Valverde is set to start tonight with Modric or Kroos the unlucky star missing out.
Arranging his defence will not produce a huge headache for Zidane, with Sergio Ramos, Raphael Varane and Dani Carvajal joined by Ferland Mendy.
The £47million summer signing missed the trip to Valencia through suspension but is back to replace Nacho Fernandez at left-back.
That is also because mainstay defender Marcelo is out with a calf problem, as are Lucas Vazquez (foot), James Rodriguez (knee) and Marco Asensio (knee).
MELO OUT, MAN
4
Ernesto Valverde has a far more straightforward job when configuring his Barcelona team for El Clasico.
Arthur Melo (hamstring) is the only likely starter absent, along with Ousmane Dembele (thigh).
That should provide Ivan Rakitic with a starting berth in a 4-3-3 setup headed by Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Antoine Griezmann.
The centre of defence is something of a conundrum as the Blaugrana boss picks between Clement Lenglet and Samuel Umtiti.
Without a start in three La Liga games, Umtiti is likely to miss out to former Nancy player Lenglet.
4
4
latest la liga news
There remain fears of the game being disrupted by Catalan political protests after the original October 26 date was postponed.
The security operation in place has been described as the biggest-ever for El Clasico with over 3,000 police officers called up to protect the 100,000 fans and two squads.
In another unprecedented move, Real and Barcelona will share the same pre-match hotel and travel to the ground under the same police escort.
Barcelona vs Real Madrid - Live stream, TV channel, kick-off time and betting odds for El Clasico