After Barça’s three consecutive victories against Real Madrid, in the Super Cup final, the first leg of the Cup semi-final and the last league match at the Camp Nou, with a single win for the whites in the first round at the Bernabéu, The fifth classic of the course will lead this Wednesday to the final of the KO tournament. With Barcelona’s advantage in the tie after the 0-1 draw a month ago at the white arena, but now with very important casualties in the Barça team and eager for revenge from the Meringues for their great disadvantage in the League and, above all, , due to the recent defeat suffered at the Camp Nou and the disallowed goal for Asensio, which still stings a lot in Real Madrid.
More is at stake for Barça in this stake that will grant one of the two giants of Spanish football the chance to win a title to which the Catalans have become accustomed for a decade -six trophies in the last eleven editions- and against which the Madrid has not stopped crashing, with its last Cup won in 2014 and no final since then. At the expense of the Champions League, this Cup would not alleviate Real Madrid’s sorrows, but their pass to the final with a comeback against their eternal rival at the Camp Nou would be a setback for the Catalans.
Despite what Xavi affirms, the pressure in this round of the Cup semifinals is not for Madrid, but for Barça, who defends against his fans a victory by the minimum that reinforced his status as favorite in this cup tie. However, now without the double value of the goals in the opposite field in the event of a tie and with the competitive potential that Madrid usually exhibits in renowned events, the balance seems to have balanced. And more, with the absence of Pedri, Dembélé, De Jong and Christensen and the greater depth and quality of the bench of Carlo Ancelotti’s team, apart from the reunion of Benzema with the goal.
It is precisely offensive forcefulness that Real Madrid needs at the Camp Nou, where the Barça coach, after having managed to form a supportive block that is more effective than gimmicky, expects an “aggressive” and “more courageous” opponent, although Ancelotti insists that “the idea is not to go crazy to score a goal.” “The idea is to play a complete game, handle it well with and without the ball and control it,” acknowledges the Italian coach.
With the respect that the azulgranas have for the madridistas, who will arrive at the Camp Nou “injured”, as Xavi points out, the Catalan coach calls for his team to have “a lot of personality to have the ball” and, given the good result they have Since reinforcing the midfield, he will once again line up four midfielders. In Madrid, however, although Ancelotti is not in favor of changing too much, he plans to maintain his usual 4-3-3 or modify his system and try to surprise Barça with Modric more advanced, now that Barça has recovered defensive solidity.
Lineups:
Barcelona: Ter Stegen, Araujo, Kound, Marcos Alonso, Balde, Sergi Roberto, Busquets, Kessie, Gavi, Raphinha and Lewandowski.
Real Madrid: Courtois, Carvajal, Militao, Alaba, Camavinga, Valverde, Kroos, Modric, Rodrygo, Benzema and Vinicius.
Referee: Martínez Munuera (Valencian).
Stadium and schedule: Camp Nou. 9:00 p.m. (The 1).