Barcelona’s season seems to be imploding even before it begins, as the club reels with the exit of Neymar and an embarrassing first leg 3-1 loss to arch-rivals Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup.

Wednesday’s second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu will not be easy, but  La Blaugrana are the king of comebacks. Should they put up a special performance in El Clasico, they still have a chance of a fruitful season.

Barcelona’s cause has certainly been helped by Cristiano Ronaldo’s five-game suspension, but Real have immense bench strength and thus, are firm favourites to lift the title.

Real Madrid

It’s easy to forget that barely a week ago Real were on the verge of crisis, losing game after game in their summer friendlies

They followed up their UEFA Super Cup win over Manchester United last week with a compehensive victory over Barcelona at the Nou Camp on Monday to once again prove that form is temporary, class is permanent.

Without star forward Ronaldo, they are a blunt in attack but if the first leg proved anything, is that Marco Asensio is coming into his own. The 20-year-old’s golazo effectively killed Barcelona’s hopes and Zinedine Zidane will be under pressure to start him for the return leg.

Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema continue to misfire, a worrying sign for the reigning European and Spanish champions, but the fact their midfield and defence looks solid puts them in good stead of Wednesday’s tie.

Talking Corner: We’ve taken an important first step, but we can’t get carried away. It’s a good result, but there’s still the second leg and anything can happen-Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos (www.realmadrid.com)

Injury concerns: Jesus Vallejo (unspecified)

Suspension Alert: Cristiano Ronaldo

Barcelona

The club may deny it, but they are struggling without Neymar at the moment. The Brazilian’s replacements, Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool) and Ousmane Dembele (Borussia Dortmund) are yet to arrive and Gerard Deuolofeu is struggling to justify his inclusion into the Blaugrana starting XI.

Star man Lionel Messi drops deep into midfield too often for the ageing Andres Iniesta is outmatched by younger, physically superior opponents. Paulinho was signed by the club on Monday for a fee of €40 million, but doubts remain over the Brazilian’s calibre, considering he comes from the Chinese Super League.
So what then? Play it to Messi and his strike-partner Lionel Suarez and hope for the best?
At the moment, Barcelona seem short of a gameplan and Real have their number, but this is football and anything can happen as long as Barcelona’s No.10 is on the pitch.

Talking Corner: Even though they (Real Madrid) will be favourites, the game is still there to be played-Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde (as per www.fcbarcelona.com)

Injury concerns: Thomas Vermaelen (knee)

Suspension Alert: None

Super Stat: Real Madrid have won 94 of the 234 competitive El Clasicos, while Barcelona have won 91!