El Clasico 16/17 Thread

[RealGunner]

Match 1

Barcelona Vs Real Madrid
3rd December
15:15PM BST
Camp Nou


Morata, Kroos and Bale are out for Real Madrid.

Iniesta will return for Barcelona. Pique hopes to be fit.


Potential Madrid Team

----------------------Navas--------------------------
Carvajal-------Ramos------Varane-----------Marcelo
--James------Modric-------Kovacic------------Isco
-----------Benzema--------Ronaldo-----------------

Potential Barcelona Team

---------------------MTS-------------------------------
Sergi Roberto----Pique-----Umtiti/Masch---------Alba
----------------------Busquets------------------------
----------Iniesta------------------Rakitic-------------
Messi-----------------Suarez-----------------Neymar


Honestly, if Iniesta wasn't back I would have been 90% sure of a Madrid win or at least a draw, despite the fact it's at Camp Nou. But Iniesta changes things as he is literally a game changer. Barca's defence is still suspect though.

Bale is a massive miss for Madrid. Ronaldo seems to be back in form thankfully. Benzema performs well against Barca. However the midfield is key for Madrid.

Barcelona's best chance is through MSN so they need to up their game. Specially Suarez who has been quite poor recently.

Gonna go with a 2-2 Draw.

[Lucifer]

3-0 Barca.

[Pedram]

Bale's injury is a huge blow for Real Madrid.

Barca to win 2-1.

[Myesyats]

Iniesta is back. Team will be eager to bounce back.

4-1 in favour of Barca.

[Onyx]

Doesn't Iniesta play LCM?

[RealGunner]

Doesn't Messi play as the manager?

[halamadrid2]

I had to check your RM line up twice to make sure I hadn't misread the name on the right flank

Iniesta is back which would probably mean a Barca win.

According to Marca ZZ is dropping Isco for Casemiro instead of Chad. So thats at least 45 mins wasted letting Barca play tiki taka around Ronaldo.......

[RealGunner]

Shit, forgot Casemiro.

Zizou can't do this man.

[Doc]

Iniesta, who hasn't kicked a ball for at least a month and a half, lacking every sort of match fitness, is gonna start in a Clasico? Then again, I wouldn't fault Lucho for that, his next options are Turan, Gomes and Denis.

James to start on the right? Lol. Come on RG, you know Lucas is getting the nod. James is even behind Asensio in the pecking order. If there ever was a time where Madrid were clear favourites in a Clasico in the Camp Nou, it is this weekend.

That being said, this is Barcelona at the Camp Nou. I expect them to put their very best, um, foot forward for this match. While as a fan, I am (over) confident we can get a win, a draw actually suits ZZ's Madrid just as good.

[Harmonica]

Draw fits Refdrid agenda here the best, I think if Refdrid is winning refs will actually use "hide the bias statistically card" and give something Barca here, I also see that happening if Barca is winning for Refdrid. That'll enable them gift more points for Refdrid in the long run without risking casuals waking from decades of delusion. Huge money on a draw here.

[futbol_bill]

Or maybe just maybe he'll disallow a legal Madrid goal like happened Sunday to Juanmi!

[halamadrid2]

Clos Gomes reffing this game. Ramos red card, disallowed goal and ZZ sent up to the stands confirned. Biggest game this season and they choose this tool to screw us over

[The Demon of Carthage]

I respect Barcelona as a rival and as an institution, and I have no doubt that this game is going to be extremely difficult for us, especially with all the injuries to our key players.

Fortunately, the six-point advantage means that we would remain top even if we drew or lost. The perfect scenario is a win for Madrid, but I wouldn't say no to a draw given the circumstances.

I hope we win.

[Myesyats]

Clos Gomes reffing this game. Ramos red card, disallowed goal and ZZ sent up to the stands confirned. Biggest game this season and they choose this tool to screw us over

Tbh every ref in spain is a clown

[Hapless_Hans]

Clos Gomes reffing this game. Ramos red card, disallowed goal and ZZ sent up to the stands confirned. Biggest game this season and they choose this tool to screw us over

The only question of value is - is he on harmonica's list of corrupt referees?
If not, I assume he will be after the game.

[iftikhar]

Isco is a winger???

[The Demon of Carthage]

He's not on his list because Barcelona are undefeated under Gomez's order. They have never lost a game with him in charge. The referee himself is despised by a big portion of the Madrid fanbase because he made many controversial decisions against Madrid in the past.

I don't agree with them, though. I think mistakes are part of the game and referees make them all the time. It doesn't mean they're intentionally favoring someone over someone else. All we can do, as fans, is hope not to be on the receiving end of those mistakes when they happen.

And even if this referee had pro-Barcelona leanings, I don't think he would be dumb enough to intentionally favor Barcelona now where the suspicions are at their highest.

[Doc]

Not even. RG's lineup just puts Isco on the wings with respect to the 4-4-2 formation. More than likely Isco would play more as a wide midfielder than a winger. Most of the wing play would be from Marcelo.

[halamadrid2]

Clos Gomez has a special hatred for our club in his heart. Think it all started under Mou and ever since then he has made it his mission to screw us over. I am happy ZZ nipped it in the bud before the media took the words and created a moutain out of a molehill but deep down I think he feels it too. There are so many reffs they could've chosen who don't undeniably hate either team like Lahoz or Mallenco who have waaay more Clasico experience but they had to choose him. And Tebas the pos can't stop running his mouth. Imagine if we get a questionable decision in our favour, rumours of corruption will be rife since he has openly just said he wants us to win only in Spain

[Doc]

Yeah, Spain is rather unique where someone in a position of real importance in the football governing body (the President) would say they want one side to win over the other. If anyone has any similar examples, please feel free to share it with the class.

It's not so much Gomez's supposed disdain for Real Madrid (don't wanna get into that) but I would be more concern with the amount of yellows he has given out this season. 2, 6, 4, 8, 7 in each match he officiated before the La Real - Barcelona match. I assume he was told to tone it the f down.

[Winter is Coming]

Defeat is written in the stars for us tbh

[Hapless_Hans]

Yeah, Spain is rather unique where someone in a position of real importance in the football governing body (the President) would say they want one side to win over the other. If anyone has any similar examples, please feel free to share it with the class.

Spain may have an outspoken Real fan as president of the league association, who doesn't disguise his preference.

In Germany, the equivalent official, the DFL president, is in fact Rauball, the president of BVB, himself.
That's as if Uncle Flo himself was LFP president

[Great Leader Sprucenuce]

He's not on his list because Barcelona are undefeated under Gomez's order. They have never lost a game with him in charge. The referee himself is despised by a big portion of the Madrid fanbase because he made many controversial decisions against Madrid in the past.

I don't agree with them, though. I think mistakes are part of the game and referees make them all the time. It doesn't mean they're intentionally favoring someone over someone else. All we can do, as fans, is hope not to be on the receiving end of those mistakes when they happen.

And even if this referee had pro-Barcelona leanings, I don't think he would be dumb enough to intentionally favor Barcelona now where the suspicions are at their highest.

I hope you realise you are far too sensible

It's almost like referees are humans and make mistakes ( ones that are bad at their job more so)

[McAgger]

Hopefully it's not as boring as last season's Clasico with Zidane.

[VanDeezNuts]

This has Barca bounce back written all over it. RM are in good form but a few key losses namely Bale and Kroos will be too many changes for ZZ to manage.

Casemiro would be a great addition, but he has zero match fitness- we haven't seen him play a single minute in months. Coming back and starting (as ZZ implies in his interviews) v Barca is too soon.

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