Jordi Roura's Barcelona may seek to "right the ship" in Saturday's ClAsico after being shown the doorway in the Copa del Rey due to Jose Mourinho and his white knights. Has the excitement of Tuesday's 3-1 victory against Barcelona teetered off yet? Barely. True Madrid enjoyed arguably among its finest fits under director Jose Mourinho the 2009 Tuesday, rendering Barcelona's recent stories Xavi, Iniesta and Messi entirely impotent. The Whites put in a whole team performance, ultimately causing a brace by Cristiano Ronaldo and a headed target by 19-year-old prodigy Raphael Varane. That Saturday, the Catalans will once again face down against los Vikingos with three goals in mind: recuperate their pride and reputation together of football's elite sides, apply tactical adjustments to impose their will on the fit, and, more pragmatically, protect their 16-point lead over Real Madrid in Manhunter Liga. With two straight failures in critical games weighing heavily on their heads, Roura's men will definitely use Saturday's fit being an opportunity to show the world why they're generally called one of the best factors in football history. After losing to AC Milan in the UCL and Real in the CDR, the Catalans' confidence has taken a hit, but so has their aura of invincibility. A triumph at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday may afford Barcelona the point it takes to once again intimidate the rest of the footballing world; nonetheless, that depends mightily on the participants Jose Mourinho decides to use from the Catalan team. While Barcelona has no have to rotate their first team people since their next match isn't till March 9th, Madrid will undoubtedly maintain a number of its beginners for Tuesday's must-win sport against Manchester United. We possibly may see Barcelona integrate players like David Villa, Adriano and Javier Mascherano within their beginning XI, while Mourinho areas an XI composed primarily of reserve players. It will be interesting to see whether Barcelona tries to employ its usual tiki-taka playing design with a greater level of efficiency, or whether Tuesday's reduction will entice them to test different strategies contrary to the Madrid stocks. While Cristiano Ronaldo will likely function for section of Saturday's ClAsico, it will be up to Jose Mourinho to ascertain how many minutes the Portuguese captain loves and whether he starts the game or comes off the table as he did against Rayo. Diego Lopez will more than likely start in target to keep his sharpness ahead of Tuesday's conflict with the Red Devils, and the back-line can begin to see the reunite of Marcelo at left-back, Albiol, Carvalho or Pepe at centre-back, and maybe Michael Essien or Nacho at right-back. Pepe could use some minutes to regain his fitness and rhythm, however it is unlikely that Mourinho will risk him for the entire 90 minutes. In addition, Mourinho may possibly elect to play Essien in his normal position: middle midfield. Luka Modric is nearly a in midfield, and he will be presented by this match with a great possibility to test his skills against a good opponent. Several Madridistas (myself included) have been critical of Modric's output this season, but hopefully he'll find his most readily useful form in the "business end" of the season. Kaka will likely start in the opening with Callejon on the best and Cristiano on the left, but the starting striker position is certainly a puzzle. If Benzema is fit, he could possibly see a run-out to have some minutes under his belt before going to Old Trafford; however, Higuain and Alvaro Morata are both hungry for minutes and the chance to show Mister which they are suitable starters if and when Benzema is experiencing poor type. All in all, Saturday's sport won't enjoy the high-stakes billing of Tuesday's CDR clash, but a ClAsico is a ClAsico, and Barcelona will certainly turn out of the door guns blazing in the hopes of rekindling their pride and defending their advantage in La Liga. Thankfully for Mourinho, the "Only Special One" (credit to Carlos) can field reserve players seeking to prove a place and show the entire world that they're worthy of wearing the royal crest over their minds. Hala Madrid!
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