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Real Madrid and Barcelona are gearing up for their first La Liga face-off this weekend, in what promises to be a thrilling encounter between the two arch-rivals.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, the former Liverpool vice-captain who is preparing for a return to Merseyside, could feature for Madrid in the game after recovering from injury, while Marcus Rashford is expected to lead Barcelona's attack following his season-long loan move from Manchester United during the summer.
With only a two-point gap separating the teams, Madrid leads on 24 points, while Barcelona trails closely behind after nine matches into the season. Last weekend saw Barcelona narrowly avoid a draw at home against Girona, thanks to a last-minute goal from Ronald Araujo in the 93rd minute.
Barcelona's manager, Hansi Flick, was sent off during the nail-biting match and will consequently serve a touchline ban this weekend in Madrid.
Madrid also had a close shave, securing a 1-0 victory over Getafe with an 80th-minute goal from Kylian Mbappe, following Allan Nyom's dismissal for a cynical foul on Vinicius Junior.
Getafe was further reduced to nine men when Alex Sancris received his second yellow card for fouling the same player.
As we gear up for another exciting weekend, will there be more drama when these two giants clash? We bring you all the details you need to know about the El Clasico showdown...
What time is kick-off?
El Clasico is scheduled for Sunday, October 26, at the Santiago Bernabeu. The game will kick off at 4:15 pm local time, which is 3:15 pm UK time, 11:15 am ET, and 10:15 am PT.
The time difference between the East Coast and Spain (Central European Time) is usually six hours, but there will be just a five-hour gap on Sunday as the daylight saving time in Europe changes during the early hours of Sunday morning (the clocks go back).
Daylight saving time doesn't change in the United States until Sunday, November 2.
Is the match on TV?
In the United Kingdom, Eoin McDevitt, Guillem Balague, and Gaizka Mendieta will be covering all the action live on Premier Sports 1, with build-up starting from 2:45 pm UK time.
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Fans in the United States can watch the game on ESPN 2, with coverage starting at 11am ET. It will also be available to watch on ESPN+ and ESPN Deportes.
Early team news
Alexander-Arnold is expected to play some role on Sunday after recovering from a hamstring injury, although there's a good chance he won't start after missing more than a month of soccer. Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba will be unavailable for Madrid.
Barcelona, meanwhile, will be without Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Gavi, Joan Garcia, Robert Lewandowski, Dani Olmo, Jules Kounde, and Raphinha.
English (US) ·