Real Madrid were beaten 1-0 by Leganes in their last competitive game in the Copa del Rey, although they still made it to the next round, that loss ended their two games winning streak and they would be looking to bounce back in this game. Los Blancos did beat Real Betis away from home in their last league game, thanks to a late strike from Dani Cabellos, but Sevilla are a different opponent in terms of quality and it would a more demanding game for them in this fixture. Sevilla have also been very inconsistent this season. They topped the La Liga table at some point during the first half of the season but their 2019 haven’t gotten off to the right start so far. They started the year with a 1-1 draw against Atletico Madrid before going on to play Athletic Bilbao 3 times and losing twice, only narrowly qualifying for the next round of the Copa del Rey. Their fans would be eager to see their side return to winning ways here and it would be a tough task but not so unthinkable giving Madrid’s inconsistent form.

Real Madrid and Villarreal square up in this first La Liga game of the year which was moved backwards because of Madrid’s participation in the Club World Cup. Los Blancos won the Club World Cup with relative ease, however, they haven’t had the best of seasons domestically and their fans would be hoping that they can now kick start their domestic campaign in good form. Madrid have played one game less than league leaders, Barcelona and the Catalans have an 8 points lead on them so only a win in this game would help their chances of catching up with Lionel Messi and Co. This is Madrid’s third consecutive game against a relegation-threatened side and they have won their last two by a single goal. Villarreal are also struggling this season. Having ended last season in a Europa League position, they are currently fighting relegation in the Spanish top flight and appointed  a new manager last month. Luis Garcia’s first game in charge was a 2-2 draw against Huesca and he has had more than three weeks to prepare for the second half of the season, so we expect to see a  good performance from them here.

Valencia had such a great season the last time out and it seemed only a matter of time before they eventually win yet another La Liga title, but they have failed to follow that performance up this season. They qualified for the Champions League this season but failed to reach the knockout stages, their performances in the league has even been more shocking as they come into this game in the 14th position. They are in their current position mainly because of the amount of times they have drawn games in the league this season. They have won just 3 games all season while picking of draws in a remarkable 10 matches out of the 16 they have played. Los Che would be hoping that this year comes to an end with their poor run of form as they look to get a win here. Huesca come into this game at the bottom of the La Liga table and they would be looking to move out of that position before the year ends. They are currently 7 points away from safety so a win in this game may not do much for them but it can take them one place up from the bottom of the table. They haven’t won any of their last 6 games, picking up just three draws and losing the rest.

Real Madrid would be looking to banish the ghost of their last league game when they take to the field for this match. Los Blancos enjoyed some success in midweek as they triumphed 2-0 over AS Roma, that was their 5th win in 6 games under Santiago Solari. The last time they were in action in the league, they were beaten 3-0 by unfancied Eibar, so they come into this match looking to avoid another upsetting defeat while Valencia would be looking to inflict exactly that on them. Los Che were beaten 1-0 by Juventus in the Champions League on Tuesday, that result effectively ended their Champions League run and they would now focus more on finishing in a European place in the league. Prior to their match against Juve, Marcelinho’s men were on a run of 3 straight wins. They have however, found it hard to score goals away from home. They have just 7 goals from 10 away games so far and that wouldn’t give a shaky Real Madrid defence any cause for concern.

This would be the first time in a long time that El Classico would be held without any of Cristiano or Lionel Messi being involved, and it would be interesting to see who takes centre stage in this game between arguably the world’s biggest rivals. Despite the absence of the two biggest stars to have graced this occasion, there is a lot at stake in this game, especially for Real Madrid. Their manager is on the brink of getting the sack and another defeat in this game will see them lose further ground on Barcelona at the top of the La Liga table. Barcelona performed well in their first game without Lionel Messi when they beat Inter Milan 2-0 in midweek, meanwhile, Real Madrid struggled to overcome Czech minors, Viktoria Plzen in a 2-1 win. That win ended a run of four losses from five games, but this game may have come too early for their confidence. Real Madrid no doubt have a good record on this ground recently, but their current form makes it hard to see them getting anything out of this game. The sides met 4 times last season with Real Madrid easy 5-1 aggregate winners in the Spanish Super Cup, however Barca took 4 points off Los Blancos in La Liga. Real did get a point at Camp Nou though and they have avoided defeat on their last 3 league visits to Barcelona. Indeed none of the last 6 league clasicos have resulted in home wins.

When the season started, few would have thought that this game would be a top of the table clash, but that is what it is as Barcelona host the in-form Sevilla here. Barcelona and Real Madrid have uncharacteristically been struggling recently and Sevilla is one of a few teams that have taken advantage of their bad form to get themselves up the league table. Barcelona currently trail their visitors by a single point, and allowing them to leave the Camp Nou with even a point would signal that the season may have entered a full-blown crisis mode. Barcelona head into this game on the back of a four games winless run and they would be under pressure to end that dismal run in this game. However, they did improve just before the international break by winning at Tottenham and picking up a draw at the Mestalla against Valencia. Sevilla are top of the league table for the first time since 2007. That season they ended their campaign in 3rd position. While it is too early to talk about them challenging for the title, if they continue like this they comfortably finish inside the top three again. Barcelona have a great recent record against Sevilla, winning 9 of the 10 meetings since the start of 2016. That includes Copa del Rey Final and Spanish Super Cup victories this year. Sevilla have only won one of their last 22 games against Barcelona in La Liga (D5 L16), 2-1 in October 2015, keeping a clean sheet only once in the process.