Spanish Super Cup Preview

The first official Clasico of the season takes place on this evening, as a buoyant Real Madrid side are hosted by fierce rivals Barcelona in the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup.
The Catalan giants come into the game on the back of the bitter loss of superstar Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain for a world record fee of £198m, and will hope to prove that there is life after the Brazilian in the first clasico of the new season.
Los Blancos, meanwhile, come into the game on a high having added the European Super Cup to their coffers with a midweek victory over Manchester United, and will hope to take steps towards adding yet another trophy to their cabinet on Sunday.
Classic Encounter

Real Madrid 3 - 4 Barcelona (23/03/14)

With so many amazing Clasico ties to choose from, including the most recent, a notorious Liga tie based on Lionel Messi's iconic goal celebration alone, we eventually settled on this clash of titans during the 2013/14 season.
Though the league was eventually won by Atletico Madrid in this year, this game went some way towards making the league more competitive than it should have been.
Barcelona breathed new life into their title hopes as a Lionel Messi hat-trick helped fire them to victory in a thrilling match against a 10-man Real Madrid. Sergio Ramos (who else) was the pantomime villain here, with his 63rd minute sending off handing Barca the impetus to overturn a 3-2 deficit.

Key Battle

Aleix Vidal vs Cristiano Ronaldo

Vidal has managed to work his way into Barca manager Valverde's thinking with a series of impressive pre-season displays, keeping new €32m signing Nelson Semedo out of the side in recent games.
He will face his stiffest test yet on Sunday however, as he comes up against arguably the world's best player in Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese will be fresh having featured late against Manchester United in midweek, and can be expected to probe Vidal at every given opportunity.

Barcelona enter the 2017-18 season with a point to prove after they were made to stay in Real Madrid's shadow in 2016-17 as Los Blancos clinched Liga and swept to Champions League glory.
However, the Catalans' task of dethroning their bitter rivals has been made somewhat more difficult following the loss of Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain and they are desperately scrambling to bring in suitable reinforcements before the commencement of the season in earnest.
With the likes of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez starring in pre-season, new boss Ernesto Valverde does not seem overly concerned about the sudden departure of the Brazil star and remains focused on improving Barca's fortunes.
"I am not interested in looking back," said Valverde, who interestingly guided Athletic to a 5-1 Supercopa triumph over Barca in 2015. "We have to look at the players we have and solve problems that can arise to win matches.
"At the moment, I have some players in the team who are performing well for me. We will see if anything develops. We know that this club, like every other club, moves accordingly to the market. I am focusing mainly on what I have, the rest is up in the air."
Real, meanwhile, come into the game having already secured their first piece of silverware this season by beating Manchester United in the UEFA Super Cup earlier in the week.
After succeeding on the domestic and continental fronts last season, Zinedine Zidane's side looked somewhat vulnerable in pre-season as speculation surrounding Cristiano Ronaldo's future at the club swirled ominously in the background.
The Portuguese was given an extended break following his involvement in the Confederations Cup and did not play a part in any of the preparatory friendly matches. However, Ronaldo returned to the club last week and, after a cameo in the Super Cup, looks primed to lead the capital club into another gruelling campaign.
Barcelona Team News
Barcelona have nearly a full complement of players to choose from after the team came through their Joan Gamper Trophy win over Chapecoense unscathed last weekend.
Long-term injury absentee Rafinha remains sidelined through injury, but new signings Gerard Deulofeu and Nelson Semedo are in line to feature in their first competitive game since joining this summer.
Of course, the fixture will also mark Barca's first competitive fixture without Neymar following the Brazilian's world-record transfer to Paris Saint-Germain.
Potential starting XI: Ter Stegen; Pique, Umtiti, Alba, Vidal; Busquets, Iniesta, Rakitic; Deulofeu, L. Suarez, Messi
Real Madrid Team News
Cristiano Ronaldo came on as a late substitute in Real's UEFA Super Cup win over Manchester United earlier this week and should be in line for a starting position against Barca.
New signings Theo Hernandez and Dani Ceballos have yet to make their competitive debuts, having missed a chance in the UEFA Super Cup, but they are both included in Zinedine Zidane's 19-man squad.
Luka Modric will not play at Camp Nou, however, due to suspension.
Potential starting XI: Navas; Ramos, Varane, Marcelo, Carvajal; Casemiro, Kroos, Asensio; Isco, Ronaldo, Benzema.

Predict: 4-2 Just my personal opinion