For the fifth time this season, familiar El Clasico foes Barcelona and Real Madrid meet – this clash comes in thhe second leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final at Camp Nou and will give us the answer to who will oppose Osasuna in the showcase.Last month, Blaugrana came away from the Santiago Bernabeu with a 1-0 first-leg lead – so often the hero for Real Madrid in the defensive third, Eder Militao was the villain for Los Blancos during the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi. The Brazilian’s own goal allowed Barcelona to put one foot firmly in this year’s final while searching for a domestic double.From their four showdowns in the 2022-23 season so far, Barcelona have come up trumps three times.While another early European exit will go down as a major blot on the notebook, Xavi’s side have responded exactly how La Liga champions-elect should, and the Blaugrana are inching closer to the top-flight title by the week.El Clasico mind games – Xavi expects aggression, Ancelotti calls for calmnessRetaining a 12-point lead over Real Madrid at the top of the La Liga standings, Barcelona temporarily take a break from the title run-in as they bid to reach the Copa del Rey final for the eighth time in 10 seasons, and not since the 2006-07 campaign have they been eliminated from the semi-finals after winning the first leg.The 4-0 thrashing of Elche in the league marked Barcelona’s fifth win in succession across all tournaments – during which time they have conceded just the one goal – and only Bayern Munich have got the better of the Catalonian colossi at Camp Nou this season.Since being humbled 3-0 by Bayern, Barcelona have embarked on a nine-game unbeaten run in front of their own fans, with their most recent victory in that sequence coming against none other than Real Madrid, who did earn the weekend’s bragging rights when it came to high-scoring affairs.An emphatic 6-0 win over Valladolid in La Liga (Karim Benzema took all of seven minutes to net a hat-trick during a first-half demolition job) has done little to help Real’s prospects of retaining their domestic crown. Also, Carlo Ancelotti’s side already have one eye on their Champions League quarter-final showdown with Chelsea.##EDITORS_CHOICE##Real Madrid have failed to reach the showpiece event since the 2013-14 season – where they beat La Blaugrana in the final.As far as the rosters go, Barcelona came through their win over Elche without any fresh injury concerns to take into account, but all of Pedri (hamstring), Ousmane Dembele (hamstring), Frenkie de Jong (hamstring) and Andreas Christensen (calf) were absent.None of the quartet was seen in training on Sunday, so Xavi will likely be forced to cope without each member for the second leg, while Raphinha is back from a ban served in the top flight. Nevertheless, Ferran Torres and Ansu Fati can expect not to be out of the starting line-up.As for the visitors, Ancelotti is sweating on the fitness of Antonio Rudiger after the German centre-back missed the win over Valladolid with knee discomfort – he will be sent for scans on Monday.If Barcelona win tonight, they will equal Real Madrid’s 101 wins in El Clásico history. pic.twitter.com/H1Aq8v5qeA— Barça Buzz (@Barca_Buzz) April 5, 2023 Ferland Mendy is sure to miss out with a fresh calf problem, and Mariano Diaz has also emerged as a doubt with an unspecified complaint.Nacho Fernandez has served a La Liga suspension and could cover for Rudiger if need be, while Vinicius Junior was cautioned for the third time in the current Copa del Rey campaign in the first leg, but all yellow cards reset upon completion of the quarter-finals, so the attacker is available to help his teammates turn the tie around.COPA DEL REYSemi-finals – 2nd legTuesdayAth.Bilbao – Osasuna 1-1 (1-0) AET/Williams 33 – Ibanez 116/Osasuna qualify on aggregates 1-2Wednesday22:00: (2.50) Barcelona (3.50) Real Madrid (3.00)***odds are subject to change***
