Barcelona take on arch rivals Real Madrid at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys for the first Clasico of the season on Saturday, 28 October 2023. 

Franck Kessie’s last-gasp winner sealed Barcelona’s 2-1 victory over Real Madrid in their last La Liga meeting in March. 

All in all, Los Blancos still hold a slight lead in their head-to-head record with Barcelona in La Liga games, winning 77 times against 74 in Barca's favor, with 35 draws between them.

Barcelona earned a 3-0 victory over Real Madrid in pre-season, with the Blaugrana also winning three of their five meetings with their arch rivals last season.

However, Real Madrid claimed an impressive victory over Barcelona in their last competitive meeting - a 4-0 victory at Camp Nou in the Copa del Rey semi-finals last season. Karim Benzema scored a second-half hat-trick to overturn Barcelona's lead, with the Catalans winning the first leg 1-0 at Santiago Bernabéu.

Barcelona continued their unbeaten start to the season with a 1-0 victory over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday evening, with 17-year-old Marc Guiu the new hero for the Catalan giants. They know that a win would allow them to move ahead of their bitter rivals in the La Liga table. 

The reigning champions sit third in the La Liga table, one point behind Real Madrid and four off the surprise leaders Girona, though Barca still have a game in hand. The Blaugrana boast a perfect home record even though they won't be able to play at Camp Nou until 2026 (due to renovations). 

Xavi's men are aiming to at least extend their unbeaten run across all competitions. All in all, Barcelona are yet to lose a game this season, winning 10 of their 13 matches. However, the three draws in La Liga (at Getafe, Mallorca and Granada) have shown their vulnerable side but this isn't the case at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys.

As mentioned above, Barcelona returned to action (following the international break) with a 1-0 home win over Athletic Bilbao last weekend and La Masia youngster Marc Guiu introduced himself in the best possible way as he scored the winner right after Xavi brought him on as a second-half substitute. 

The Catalan outfit also resumed their Champions League campaign with a 2-1 win over Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday night. It was a big step towards the knockout phase, with Xavi's side set for a decisive second leg against the Ukrainian champions in Hamburg that could secure their last-16 spot. 

Gavi joined all injured players on the stands as the Barcelona starlet was sent-off in the Champions League clash against Porto and served a suspension but he's ready to return for El Clasico. 

Indeed, Barcelona's visit to the Estádio do Dragão earlier this month came at a costly price as Robert Lewandowski picked up an injury in the first-half, while Gavi was sent-off in stoppage-time. 

In a huge boost, the likes of Jules Kounde, Frenkie de Jong, Pedri, Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski were all present in Barcelona’s final training session ahead of this weekend’s El Clasico showdown with Real Madrid, yet only Lewandowski is expected to make the matchday squad. 

Xavi Hernandez refused to rule out any of his players, including Pedri, however.

Lewandowski is enjoying another efficient season during his generally prolific career, having been directly involved in 10 goals (six goals and four assists) in as many games across all competitions (8 of them in La Liga). 

Ferran Torres and Fermin Lopez were both on the scoresheet in midweek, but only the former is set to keep his starting spot for the weekend. 

If the Polish veteran is not fully fit to start, Ferran Torres could once again lead the line. The 23-year-old winger has failed to score in his last five La Liga appearances - since the 5-0 home win over Real Betis on 16 September - but he has been doing well in the Champions League. 

According to domestic reports, the Barcelona boss is considering moving Ronald Araujo back to right-back in order to pit him against Vinicius Junior, as he has done whenever he has been able to call on the Uruguayan international.

With Raphinha on his way to recovery, Lamine Yamal unlikely to play from the start, and Ferran Torres tipped to start at centre-forward if Lewandowski is not ready to play, Joao Cancelo could be moved into a right-wing position ahead of Ronald Araujo. Thus, Inigo Martinez would take Araujo’s place at centre-back.

Carlo Ancelotti's side played out a 1-1 draw against Sevilla at Estadio Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán last Saturday to extend their unbeaten form across all competitions. They are now unbeaten in six games, winning five of them, and will be keen to build on against Barcelona. 

Real Madrid were victorious on their trip to northwestern Portugal in midweek. Los Blancos claimed a 2-1 victory over Braga in the Champions League as they are top of Group C, winning all of their games in the competition so far. 

Meanwhile, Real Madrid have lost the top spot in La Liga following Girona's dramatic win over Celta Vigo on Friday night. Yet, Los Blancos can quickly regain it with a positive score against Barcelona, assuming that a draw would be an acceptable outcome. 

Having scored a brace to inspire Real Madrid's 4-0 victory over Osasuna prior to the break, Jude Bellingham already reached double figures as he added to his tally (11 goals in 12 matches) on Tuesday night. 

Carlo Ancelotti opted for a 3-4-1-2 system against Braga, with Nacho and Dani Carvajal either side of Antonio Rudiger in a back three. 

Veteran Luka Modric played a full 90 minutes and it remains to be seen whether the 38-year-old Croatian midfielder will start at Barcelona on Saturday afternoon. 

The Italian tactician was able to rest some of his experienced figures in midweek so he can make changes to his starting line-up here. 

David Alaba and Toni Kroos both remained unused substitutes at Braga, while Ferlan Mendy and Aurélien Tchouaméni were introduced as second-half substitutes. 

Elsewhere, Thibaut Courtois and Brazilian defender Eder Militao are long-term absentees for Real Madrid, with Turkish teenager Arda Guler also set to miss out. 

Midfielder Dani Ceballos has also been struggling with injuries as he missed the opening weeks of the new campaign due to a hamstring issue. Ceballos also missed Real Madrid's last two matches and is also set to miss El Clasico this weekend due to a "minor muscle injury". 

This El Clasico is so, so difficult to call right now. Much will depend on how individuals perform on the day.

Both managers could be looking for more safety and take less risks in the first El Clasico of 2023-24. However, emotions and attacking quality should eventually prevail and we expect Barcelona to continue their solid form on home soil.