Barcelona vs Real Madrid - Copa del Rey: TV channel, team news, lineups & prediction
2023's third iteration of El Clasico takes place on Wednesday night as Barcelona host Real Madrid in the second leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final tie.
The Catalans take a slender 1-0 aggregaate advantage into the fixture thanks to Eder Militao's own goal in the first leg at the start of March.
Spain's two behemoths have met since, with Barça claiming a dramatic 2-1 triumph on home soil to all but put an end to the La Liga title race thanks to Franck Kessie's late winner. Xavi's side are currently 12 points clear at the summit, and both sides head into Wednesday's second leg off the back of emphatic league victories. Barça also won the Supercopa de Espana final in January.
Here's 90min's preview of the Copa del Rey semi-final second leg between the Clasico rivals.
Where are Barcelona vs Real Madrid playing?
- Location: Barcelona, Spain
- Stadium: Camp Nou
- Date: Wednesday 5 April
- Kick-off Time: 20:00 BST / 15:00 EST / 12:00 PST
- Referee: Juan Martínez Munuera
- VAR: Jose Luis González González
Barcelona vs Real Madrid H2H Record (Last Five Games)
- Barcelona: 3 wins
- Real Madrid: 2 wins
- Draws: 0
Current Form (Last Five Games)
- Barcelona: WWWWW
- Real Madrid: DWWLW
How to watch Barcelona vs Real Madrid on TV and live stream
Country | TV channel/live stream |
|---|---|
UK | BT Sport 1 |
US | ESPN+ |
Canada | N/A |
Barcelona team news
The hosts are likely to be without both Pedri and Frenkie de Jong in midfield, with Franck Kessie or Sergi Roberto poised to join Sergio Busquets and Gavi in the middle of the park.
Ansu Fati could retain his place down the left after a positive performance against Elche, while Xavi will welcome Raphinha back to the fold after he was suspended for the weekend's win.
Ousmane Dembele and Andreas Christensen remain out.
Barcelona predicted lineup vs Real Madrid
Barcelona predicted lineup (4-3-3): Ter Stegen; Araujo, Kounde, Alonso, Balde; Busquets, Gavi, Roberto; Raphinha, Lewandowski, Fati.
Real Madrid team news
Carlo Ancelotti has a couple of injury concerns in defence. After just returning from a hamstring injury, Ferland Mendy has picked up another setback and is poised to miss out with a calf issue.
Antonio Rudiger wasn't in the squad for the thumping of Real Valladolid, but his manager doesn't believe the German international's knee injury isn't anything serious and he should be fit to start on Wednesday.
After Real were dominated for a large portion of the recent Clasico, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Ancelotti change tack and potentially deploy a 4-4-2 as opposed to his usual 4-3-3.
Real Madrid predicted lineup vs Barcelona
Real Madrid predicted lineup (4-4-2): Courtois; Carvajal, Militão, Rudiger, Alaba; Valverde, Modric, Camavinga, Vinicius; Benzema, Rodrygo.
Barcelona vs Real Madrid score prediction
It's in these sorts of games where Real Madrid come alive. They were in a rampant mood at the weekend, as were their upcoming opponents, with Karim Benzema bagging a first-half hat trick.
Barcelona were far superior in the recent Camp Nou meeting, and their supremacy will surely convince Ancelotti to change his approach. Overturning a goal deficit against this stringent Barça defence will not be easy, but Real certainly boast the talent, knowhow, and cajones to do so.
A brave approach from Ancelotti is expected to pay dividends, and the visitors will turn this into an enthralling tie before claiming victory in the shootout.
Prediction: Barcelona 1-2 Real Madrid (Real to win on penalties)