If Barcelona get a result at home to Real Madrid in Sunday’s Clasico at Camp Nou then Hansi Flick’s side will be La Liga champions. Read that again. It’s the biggest and often the most glamorous game in world football and Barcelona could win the title because of it.
No wonder those around the Real Madrid camp are tense, but at least Madrid winning away to Espanyol at the weekend meant they’ll avoid the ignominy of forming a guard of honour for the new champions.
The last time that happened, in 2008 at the Bernabeu, it was the other way around. Fans formed mock guards of honour outside the stadium and cheered each other through.
Then Barcelona’s players lined up to applaud Madrid players as the entire stadium hollered insults and told them to salute the champions. Madrid’s players left them waiting and enjoyed that walk. There were just six Barcelona fans in the stadium to witness it. Madrid were champions, they won the game 4-1 just to rub it in. Coach Frank Rijkaard departed to be replaced by Pep Guardiola and the Catalans won all six competitions they entered the following season.
Barcelona have got their rivals in checkmate. Had Espanyol won against Madrid last week, they would have also helped their despised neighbours from across the city win the title. Barca boast an astonishing 29 wins from 34 league games and could still reach 100 points and score 100 goals.
They have won the title in circumstances which have delighted their fans in recent years. In 2023, their players celebrated the league title in the centre circle at neighbours Espanyol. Home fans booed and then a few hundred jumped on to the pitch and chased Barcelona's players off it to the accompaniment of the whole stadium singing anti-Barca songs.
Barcelona is preparing for a party, but parties can be spoiled. The Catalans have only won four of the 10 La Liga derbies so far this decade, though their 4-0 triumph in the Bernabeu last season remains the most emphatic. The equivalent game last season in Barcelona remains the best, a 4-3 win for Flick’s side, who were trailing 2-0 to two Kylian Mbappe goals after 11 minutes. Barcelona then scored four times between the 19th and 45th minutes.
Mbappe has been injured, though he’s back in training. At a reportedly unhappy training ground, the French striker has been accused of being involved in a dispute with a staff member. Madrid are probably without key players Arda Guler, Ferland Mendy and Aurelien Tchouameni.
The latter was involved in a dressing-room fight with Federico Valverde on Thursday that resulted in the latter being treated in hospital with a cut to the head. The club later confirmed their captain will be sidelined for two weeks.
Barcelona will be without their best – the injured Lamine Yamal – and Raphinha, who is coming back from injury. The Brazilian, last season’s player of the year, has missed the past six games, including the two vital Uefa Champions League quarter-final games against Atletico Madrid.
Absences could help the chances of Marcus Rashford starting a first home Clasico. The Mancunian played 90 minutes in the 2-1 defeat at Madrid earlier in the season and loved the Spanish Super Cup win against Madrid in Saudi Arabia in January when he came off the bench for Raphinha after 83 minutes.
Rashford, on loan from Manchester United, has started in three of Barca’s 16 league games so far in 2026, but with 13 goals and 14 assists since September, his season can be considered successful. He’s not a star player for Barcelona, but he’s well respected by his coaches and teammates. He’s happy and wants to stay.
United have long said that there’s a deal in place and a fee which Barca would have to pay to sign the forward when his loan period is due next month. It should be simple; it seldom is with Barcelona, so expect posturing and brinkmanship when it comes to negotiations, with compromise needed.
Ahead of the Clasico, Barcelona defender Jules Kounde told the club’s media: “I see the team in great shape, very focused. We’re all really looking forward to playing in El Clasico, and we can even win La Liga with a draw, but a win would be the best.
"We trained really well today, and personally, I feel good. We’re very excited. We know their strengths and, therefore, we must continue playing according to our own style. We must know how to track back, but the key will be to press effectively.”
The game will be a 62,000 sell-out as Camp Nou continues to undergo redevelopment on the way to a 2027 completion and a 105,000 final capacity. General admission tickets have been sold for over €500 on the club’s website, with the only ones remaining being premium seats costing from €2,500 upwards. The prices are eye-watering for normal football fans, but Barcelona have long courted the tourist market.
The limited capacity means demand for tickets is higher, more so as there’s a chance to see Real Madrid suffer as FC Barcelona are crowned champions of Spain.
