😈 Mind games and absences: how Real and Barça line up for El Clásico

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·25 October 2025

😈 Mind games and absences: how Real and Barça line up for El Clásico

Real Madrid and Barcelona will play the first El Clásico of the 2025/26 season this Sunday (26).

Both teams announced their squads for the match at the Santiago Bernabéu this Saturday (25), with important updates.

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On the Real Madrid side, Dani Carvajal and Trent Alexander-Arnold are available again for the right-back position.

On the other hand, David Alaba and Antonio Rüdiger are out of the match due to physical issues.

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Barcelona, meanwhile, has a major absence with Raphinha, who suffered a setback in the treatment of his right thigh muscle injury.

The Brazilian is expected to return to the field only after the November FIFA Date.

Coach Hansi Flick will have to serve a suspension and will not be on the sidelines at the Santiago Bernabéu.

Leader seeking revenge?

Real Madrid comes into the game as the leader of La Liga with a two-point advantage over second-placed Barcelona.

Each team enters the field with only one defeat in the championship.

Thinking about the recent past, however, the match might have a revenge atmosphere for Real.

Barça won all four encounters against their rival last season.

Two of these games were in La Liga, and the other two were in finals: one in the Spanish Super Cup and the other in the Copa del Rey.

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Clash of stars... with provocation

Kylian Mbappé and Lamine Yamal are the big stars of the two clubs at the moment.

The Frenchman started the season by scoring goals in abundance.

Until he failed to score in the last match against Juventus, he had a streak of 11 games scoring at least one goal, considering his commitments for Real Madrid and France.

On the Barcelona side, Yamal continues to delight fans with beautiful plays and goal contributions.

On the eve of this El Clásico, he added some fuel to the fire by provoking Real Madrid, suggesting that the rival often benefits from refereeing decisions.