La Liga: Barcelona to close title race or will Real Madrid turn screws in high-voltage El Clásico? | Preview
La Liga: Barcelona to close title race or will Real Madrid turn screws?
The La Liga title race could have a pivotal week in the title race as top of the table Barcelona host Real Madrid at Camp Nou on Sunday, March 19. Separated by just nine points, the two arch-rivals will contest their fourth El Clasico of the season with the clash on Sunday having bearings on Real’s treble aspirations. While a win for Real will see them reduce the gap to just six points, a win for Barcelona in their own backyard could close the title race.
As things stand, Barcelona lead Real 2-1 from their three El Clasico’s from earlier in the season having won the Copa del Rey first leg 1-0 last month while also winning the Spanish Super Cup 3-1 in Riyadh. Real’s only win of the season came in the reverse La Liga clash and will look to go on parity with a win on Sunday. A win for Barcelona with 12 games to go after the current leg will see them gain upper hand and could see them lift the La Liga title for the first time since 2019.
Xavi's side has the best defense in entire Europe in the top five leagues as they have conceded only eight goals with Marc Andre ter Stegen keeping 20 clean sheets this season. A draw on Sunday will see the La Liga leaders stay at the top with nine points while the Los Blancos struggle to find a way domestically.
On the horizon, Real have a score to settle with the Blaugrana as they are set to meet them on one more occasion after Sunday. After the latest El Clasico clash, Real will also meet Barca in the return leg of the Copa del Rey semifinal at the same venue in the first week of April.
Even though the Los Blancos sit at the second position they still have to cover a huge gap. They currently have 56 points and are nine points behind the league leaders. Even without some of their key players like Pedri, Xavi's Barcelona are more than capable to produce 3 points.
The clash will also be the last La Liga game before the first international break of 2023 with players departing for different parts of the world.
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