El Clasico: Five things to look out for during Barcelona vs Real Madrid

With Barcelona 10 points ahead of Real in La Liga, this weekend's El Clasico takes on plenty more than the usual title battle

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane will take charge of his first El Clasico (Getty Images)

Barcelona and Real to pay tribute to Cruyff

Johan Cruyff is rightly a Barcelona great given his time at the club as both a player and a manager, but that doesn’t mean the tributes this weekend will come from the home side alone. Real Madrid, Barcelona’s fierce rivals, will commendably join in when the Dutch football legend is remembered in a demonstration of his impact on the sport the world over.

90,000 cards will form a mosaic among the fans which will read “Gracies Johan”, a message that will also appear on the Barcelona kit instead of the Catalans’ regular logo. Mascots for both teams will also wear shirts sporting the same tribute, along with the Cruyff and FC Barcelona Foundations written across the back of the shirts. There will be a minute’s silence held before kick-off while a video tribute is played on the big screens inside the Nou Camp.

While tensions obviously remain between the two Spanish clubs, you can expect the Real fans to honour Cruyff’s memory as fit.

Can Ronaldo prove he can perform against the big teams?

Cristiano Ronaldo remains one of the greatest players to have graced the game of football, but there remains the idea that he simply doesn’t deliver when it matters most. Having scored an incredible 41 goals for Real this season, it’s worth noting that he has not scored against a top four team in La Liga this season.

When poised with the likes of Barcelona, Atletico Madrid and Villarreal, the Portuguese appears to choke, and given the Catalans’ domination of El Clasico in recent years, Real could really do with their star man turning up.

Will Bale remind fans he belongs?

Gareth Bale’s exploits in Spain have become something of a back-seat talking point due to the Welshman’s injury trouble this year, but the 26-year-old showed glimpses of being back to his best in the 4-0 win over Seville – in which he bagged the third goal of the game. Now would be a fantastic time for Bale to remind everyone he deserves to be on the same pitch as Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

Gareth Bale needs to remind everyone he belongs on the biggest stage (Getty Images)

With Wales set to make their European Championship bow this summer, Bale could yet trigger the most important three months of his footballing career, and prove that Real will be making the right decision if they elect to build their future side around him and not Ronaldo, as has been suggested.

Zidane’s first Clasico

He may have played in more than his fair share, but Saturday’s encounter represents the first time that Zinedine Zidane has gone into El Clasico on the sideline. Having replaced Rafa Benitez earlier in the season when the title already looked to be out of their grasp, the Real legend will have been given two conditions – win the Champions League and beat Barcelona.

Zidane will have to keep his emotions in check to ensure his players do the same if he is to experience any joy against a Barcelona side that appear to be unbeatable at present. If Zidane loses his cool though, expect his players to follow suit.

What happened the last time Barcelona met Real Madrid?

Handbags

El Clasico used to be a game that showcased the brightest talents in world football, and while it still lay some claim to that mantle, recent fixtures have been remembered more for the ridiculous nature of play-acting, diving and outright cheating by both sets of players.

Real and Barca players love to go up against each other in a show of bravado on the pitch, but at the slightest touch you will see certain individuals throw themselves theatrically to the floor. The drama isn’t always contained to the pitch, either, as flare ups between Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho and the late Tito Vilanova marred El Clasicos that at times descended into complete farce.