Barcelona v Real Madrid: Score draw to do it for Madrid

 

It's the eagerly awaited second leg clash between Spain's footballing giants as Christian Crowther makes some predictions for the latest Clasico...

 

Barcelona v Real Madrid, Tuesday 20:00, Sky Sports 1, Match Odds: Barcelona 1.76, Real Madrid 5.0, The Draw 4.2

 

Despite a yawning 16-point gap separating Spain's two biggest clubs in La Liga, this latest Clasico edition promises to be another closely fought skirmish.

 

The 1-1 draw in the first leg at the Bernabeu typified just how even these encounters have become in recent seasons in what is arguably the greatest club rivalry in  world football.

 

The only notable differences from other recent Clasicos was the lack of goals in general and, the identity of Madrid's scorer, 19-year-old defender Raphael Varane  drafted in to cover for defensive injuries, who capped a brilliant performance with the equaliser.

 

By securing an away goal, it's possible to say that Tito Vilanova's side do in fact hold a slender advantage, though the regularity with which both teams score against  each other both home and away serves to dispel this theory slightly.

 

In the four meetings this season, the sides have both scored seven and conceded seven against each other, highlighting beautifully the equilibrium which has  characterised the Jose Mourinho versus Barcelona clashes of recent campaigns.

 

Both sides bring exactly the same form of three wins, a loss and two draws for their last six games in all competitions too, though encouragingly for Madridistas  they've actually only lost once inside 90 minutes in their last four visits to the Camp Nou.

 

At this stage last season, a 2-2 home draw was enough to see Barcelona progress to the semi-finals after a 2-1 win in the capital and another draw appears to be the  best bet here.

 

To Qualify

 

With a delicately poised tie against Manchester United still to negotiate in Europe and the league title long since surrendered, this is still the best hope of  silverware for Real Madrid, meaning Mourinho's men may just have that extra intent to get past Barcelona. Out of the two managers, Mourinho now has the most fit  players to choose from too, with Barca still suffering from a few defensive injuries. A high-scoring draw is definitely achievable for Los Blancos and that would be  enough to see them through.

 

Correct Score

 

Following the pattern of the nine goal-filled Clasicos preceding the 1-1 first-leg draw - every one produced over 2.5 goals - Madrid should be capable of notching a  couple as they did in the league fixture at the Camp Nou which ended in a 2-2 draw. In fact, six out of the last seven clashes have witnessed one side or another  scoring exactly two goals, including a pair of 2-2 draws.

 

Best Bet: Back Real Madrid to qualify @ 3.05

Other Recommended Bet: Back the 2-2 draw @ 15.0

 

Bet HERE

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