There is nothing quite like El Clásico. Whenever Real Madrid and Barcelona play each other, there is no bigger match happening anywhere else in the soccer world.

Sunday’s clash at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu (stream LIVE at on ESPN+ in the U.S.) will be no different. Defending LaLiga champions Barcelona arrive in the Spanish capital sitting two points behind their bitter rivals at the top of the table.

Madrid coach Xabi Alonso, a legendary midfielder who won the LaLiga title and the UEFA Champions League during his five years as a player for Los Blancos, will be experiencing his first clash against Barcelona from the dugout. He will be doing so with star striker Kylian Mbappé in top form.

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Barça boss Hansi Flick claimed a clean sweep over Madrid last season, winning all four of the matchups in his first season in charge. Young phenom Lamine Yamal was among the stars over the course of those wins, and he could once again be a match-winner in Madrid.

ESPN’s Alex Kirkland and Sam Marsden run through the form, all-time head-to-head, latest team news and key clashes ahead of the 262nd edition of El Clásico.

All-time head-to-head: Barça can draw level with a win

Real Madrid have historically maintained an advantage for most of the time in their head-to-head matchup with Barcelona, dating to the 1930s. Since then, both clubs have had periods of sustained dominance in meetings with their rivals — Madrid in the 1960s, and Barça in the 1970s and ’80s. But the balance started to shift in the past 20 years, as Madrid’s head-to-head lead narrowed, starting with the Pep Guardiola era at Barça. Madrid posted only one win in 14 meetings in all competitions between 2008 and 2012, a spell that included legendary 6-2 and 5-0 wins in the fixture for Guardiola’s team, as well as a triumph in a UEFA Champions League semifinal.

Since then, it has been more even — Barça were unbeaten in seven Clásicos from 2017 to 2019, before Madrid went six undefeated between 2019 and 2022 — but Barça’s four victories last season leave them on the brink of matching Madrid in the all-time head-to-head. — Kirkland

What happened last season?

Barcelona, slightly unexpectedly, ruled Madrid last season. There was uncertainty surrounding the Blaugrana at the start of the campaign, with no one really sure how new coach Flick would do with a young squad. Madrid, meanwhile, on the back of winning LaLiga and the Champions League, had added Kylian Mbappé to their squad.

But as often is the case in this fixture, logic did not prevail. Barça were superb in attack, racking up 16 goals in four victories against Madrid as they won both league meetings en route to the title, as well as final wins in the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Supercopa. At times, it felt as if they could score at will, especially in the final Clásico of the season, which effectively clinched the league title. After Mbappé had given Madrid a 2-0 lead inside 15 minutes, Barça replied with four unanswered goals before the break.

That was very much a theme of Barça’s wins: lots of goals in short spurts. They also scored four in the second half at the Bernabéu last October, and four in the first half in the 5-2 Supercopa win in January. It ended 16-7 to Barça on aggregate over the course of the four fascinating and hugely entertaining games. Barça are now aiming to win five straight editions of the Clásico for only the second time in club history — 2008-10, under Guardiola, was the only other time. — Marsden

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How are they doing this season?

REAL MADRID

The feeling is that Madrid are an improvement on last season’s vintage, but they’re still a work in progress. There has been a notable change in the way the team plays out of possession — with more intensity, pressing high to win the ball back, and a more cohesive defensive shape — while the other big plus has been the sensational form of Mbappé, who has scored in 10 of his 11 club games this season. Vinícius Júnior is getting closer to his best form, and while the midfield still hasn’t quite jelled, Arda Güler is now a valuable creative influence, already providing five assists for Mbappé this campaign.

Madrid’s record in LaLiga is impressive, with eight wins out of nine, but the game they didn’t win was a 5-2 thumping to Atlético Madrid. And there’s still the nagging feeling that in the “big” games — that Madrid derby, and the FIFA Club World Cup semifinal against Paris Saint-Germain in the summer — Alonso’s team has suffered stage fright. — Kirkland

BARCELONA

Flick has acknowledged Barcelona aren’t yet hitting the heights of last season. He has bemoaned poor positioning and a drop in the intensity of the pressing as two of the biggest factors in the team’s drop-off. Injuries have also played a part, with Raphinha, Yamal, Fermín López, Gavi, Joan García, Dani Olmo and Robert Lewandowski among those to sit out stretches of the season. That said, results have not been that bad. They have won two out of three in the Champions League, losing only to Paris Saint-Germain via a late goal, and are only two points behind leaders Madrid in LaLiga.

Performances have not always been as encouraging. Rayo Vallecano could have beat them earlier in the season, Sevilla scored four against them and Girona should arguably have taken at least a point last weekend. But snatching a late win against Girona and then beating Olympiacos 6-1 in midweek will give the players a confidence boost heading to Madrid. López is back and looking sharp, Yamal has featured in the past two games after recovering from a groin problem, and Marcus Rashford has settled in well. — Marsden

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Both teams have several injury doubts. What is the latest?

REAL MADRID

There’s optimism that Madrid’s issues at right back — where Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dani Carvajal have both been out injured, and Federico Valverde has reluctantly been drafted in — are soon to be solved, with both Alexander-Arnold and Carvajal pushing for a return in time for the Clásico. On the other side of the defense, Ferland Mendy is also getting close to full fitness, although the Clásico might come too soon for him, and Álvaro Carreras is the starter at left back anyway.

At center back, Dean Huijsen should be available to partner with Éder Militão, as Antonio Rüdiger is expected to be out until December, and David Alaba was substituted at halftime against Getafe last weekend as a precaution. In midfield, Dani Ceballos has a muscular problem, and is unlikely to be fit to face Barça. — Kirkland

BARCELONA

Joan García, Marc-André ter Stegen, Gavi, Olmo and Lewandowski will all sit out the game, and a source told ESPN that Raphinha will also miss out after suffering a setback in his return from a hamstring injury. But there is some positive news for Barça — Yamal and López both returned to action last weekend, with the latter then scoring a stunning hat trick with his weaker left foot against Olympiacos. Ferran Torres returned to the bench against the Greek side. Though he didn’t play, he should be ready this weekend. — Marsden

Key clashes

Kylian Mbappé vs. Barcelona’s high line: Who can forget the last time these two teams met at the Bernabéu, almost exactly a year ago? Barcelona ended up winning the match 4-0, but all four of those goals came in the second half. Before the break, it could have been a very different story, as Madrid went toe-to-toe with Barça, but Mbappé was caught offside six times (his game total of eight was a career high) and was unable to make the breakthrough.

Since then, much has changed: Mbappé looks a different player, supremely confident and comfortable in a Real Madrid shirt, and he has Güler behind him providing the support. Barça, meanwhile, look nothing like the well-oiled machine of Flick’s first season, and there’s no Iñigo Martínez marshalling the defense. There could be rich pickings if Madrid and Mbappé get it right this time. — Kirkland

Lamine Yamal vs. Álvaro Carreras: Even though Barça won both games in Lisbon against Benfica last season (5-4 and 1-0), Yamal did not have all things go his way in the matchup with Carreras. The Spanish left back was one of the players who did the best job of containing Yamal, who finally scored against Benfica in the third meeting between the teams, when Carreras was suspended.

Yamal is the sort of player who’s also motivated by individual battles. The idea that he needs to prove himself against an opponent fuels him, and he will be ready to run at Carreras. He is averaging 14.8 take-ons per 90 minutes and 6.4 successful take-ons per 90 this season in LaLiga, both of which are the most in Europe’s top five leagues (minimum 300 minutes). He also, as Flick pointed out this week, nearly always steps up in the big games. His three career goals against Madrid are more than he has scored against any other team.

With Raphinha, Lewandowski and Olmo absent, a large part of Barça’s hopes will again depend on the teenager delivering. — Marsden

Predictions

The gap between the two teams last season was significant, if not always as great as the scorelines in their four meetings suggested. Madrid look quite a bit better than last season, while Barça are worse. Madrid will win 3-1. — Kirkland

Madrid have looked more stable but also have their own problems defensively. Alonso’s biggest games in charge so far — against PSG and Atlético — have ended in defeats and I expect Barça to improve on what we have seen in recent weeks. Ultimately, with only two points between the teams in the league, a draw might not be deemed the worst result for either side if it’s tied late on. It will be a 2-2 draw. — Marsden

Odds (via ESPNBET)

Real Madrid: +105
Barcelona: +210
Draw: +300