Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde feels Real Madrid have the potential to pile misery on them.
Los Blancos will have the chance to reduce the gap between them as they are trailing by four points to the league leader. Real’s last win in the La Liga came back in September against Espanyol and since then Julen Lopetegui’s side have failed to hit the ground running.
With Lionel Messi unavailable for the El Classico this could be Real’s best chance to inflict a damage on their archrivals. The absence of Cristiano Ronaldo has already been felt but with the likes of Isco and Maco Asensio in the team, they do have enough armoury at their disposal.
Valverde said, “The more wounded Real Madrid are, the more dangerous they are.
“They have the quality to come back and they are a great team. I am expecting Real Madrid at their best.”
“There were moments at the start of the season when Madrid were brilliant in possession and in terms of the pressure they put teams under.”
“They are now on a bad run, but they also have enough about them to overcome these things, just as we do with the absence of Messi.”
