Even though there is a La Liga fixture for Real Madrid this weekend, and a Champions League game next week, it’s hard to focus on anything other than El Classico.
One person who will be keen to concentrate on the immediate proceedings is of course Carlo Ancelotti who will ensure that his players heads are right for this one.
As well as enjoying a rich vein of form right now Real Madrid have also had a clean bill of health yesterday. The full squad trained on Thursday ahead of the game against Levante this weekend. But, since then, Benzema seems to have come down with illness so Chicharito could start.
And we are starting to see a very settled Real Madrid team now. We have spoken this week about the possible addition of another midfielder but Toni Kroos and Luka Modric look as if they have been playing in partnership for years already.
They will be increasingly difficult to shift as a central midfield partnership with genuine balance. Perhaps the biggest selection issue is who starts in defence with Pepe and Sergio Ramos now fit. Does Ramos move out to the right to allow the brilliant Varane more game time in the centre of the park? Or does the young Frenchman go back onto the bench?
We genuinely believe that Varane is worthy of a place in the side right now and should be accommodated. On the flip side, he does offer cover if one of the experienced centre backs gets injured so it could be smart to wrap him in cotton wool – particularly with Barcelona just around the corner. He too seems to be suffering slightly from the same problem as Benzema so the youngster will probably not play this weekend.
So here is our predicted line up for the weekend fixture. Expect Ronaldo to score at least one more goal as he is absolutely on fire right now.
Real Madrid fans: Agreed on the line up?
