Real Madrid: 10 Bold Predictions for the El Clasico Showdown with Barcelona

It's no secret that yet another El Clasico clash is approaching.

Barcelona is in an incredible run of form, winning their last seven La Liga matches. On the other hand, Real Madrid have had some problems recently and managed to record only five wins and two draws in the last seven La Liga games.

Also, bare in mind that Barcelona didn't lose a single El Clasico this season.

With that in mind, here are six bold predictions for the next El Clasico showdown.

The Referee Will Have a Tough Night

El Clasico matches have a long history of controversy.

There's no reason for this one to be any different, especially now when Barca are closing in on Real Madrid at the top of La Liga standings.

The referee hasn't been chosen yet, but whoever gets the honour will have a tough night on that April 22.

Interesting fact: In this season's five El Clasico matches, the referees have shown 39 yellow cards as well as four red cards.

Pepe Will Be Sent off

Nowadays, Pepe is a symbol of controversy.

The Portuguese simply loves the physical side of the game and is well known for his impulsive, temperamental character.

Most recently, Pepe was handed a two-match ban for questioning the referee's authority in the game against Villarreal.

Interesting fact: Since the arrival of Mourinho, Pepe earned himself four red cards—the highest number of red cards given to a single player in the team.

Dani Alves Will Also Be Sent off

Dani Alves is well known for faking contact and injuries in order to get a rival sent off.

Not only is Alves a good actor, he is perhaps the most hot-headed player in Spain. Those who follow Barca regularly know what I am talking about.

Whenever there's a bust-up in El Clasico matches, you can be sure Alves has something to do with it.

Here's Alves in one of his El Clasico shows, in case you missed it.

Interesting fact: Dani Alves, who joined Barcelona for around €33 million in 2008, is the second most expensive defender in the history of football.

Victor Valdes Will Embarrass Himself

Despite being one of the senior players in Barcelona, Valdes is still prone to conceding cheap goals. Combine that with a relentless Real Madrid attack and you're bound to see goals.

That's one of the main reasons why he isn't, and will probably never be, Spain's first-choice goalkeeper.

Interesting fact: Despite winning three Champions League titles, Valdes has never been included in the UEFA Champions League Team of the Year.

Iker Casillas Will Be the Man of the Match

Lately, Casillas has been in surprisingly poor form. But he is Real Madrid's captain, and I expect him to step up his game in El Clasico.

His performance depends much on his teammates ability to stifle Barca's attack, but even if they fail to do so, Casillas still has what it takes to bail out his team.

Don't forget he is one of the best goalkeepers in the world.

Interesting fact: Casillas has won all four IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper awards in the last four years, which currently represents a record for most consecutive wins.

Messi Will Not Score

There's a reason why I put 'bold' in the headline.

No matter who the opposition is, Messi is always expected to outshine everyone else on the field.

But recently the Argentine struggled against Los Blancos. It seems Mourinho has finally found a way to stop the three time Ballon d'Or winner.

Unfortunately for Real Madrid, whenever Messi has a tough day his teammates manage to make up for him.

Even if Messi fails to score, I expect him to grab an assist.

Interesting fact: In the last two El Clasico meetings Messi couldn't record a single goal, but grabbed two assists.

Cristiano Ronaldo Will Score

Ronaldo and Messi are still locked in the Pichichi trophy race, but the Portuguese has been leading almost since the start of the season.

As always, expect Real Madrid to rely heavily on Ronaldo as their focal point of attack.

With his current goal-scoring record, I couldn't bet against the former Ballon d'Or winner.

Interesting fact: Ronaldo scored three goals in the last five El Clasico matches with two of them coming at Camp Nou.

Both Teams Will Score

Despite both of the teams having some of the most talented defenders, their defenses tend to perform below average in El Clasico derbies.

Recently, the Clasico clashes have turned into a 'Who can score more?' competition, with both teams seemingly neglecting defensive duties.

Interesting fact: In the last five matches between the two Spanish giants, there hasn't been a single game in which one of the teams failed to score.

Mourinho Will Finally Prove He's a Better Tactician Than Guardiola

Pep Guardiola managed to outsmart Jose Mourinho in almost all of their El Clasico matches, but Real Madrid now have the edge over their rivals.

They have collected six points more than Barca in La Liga. This means Los Blancos can afford to lose a game (or maybe even two!), while their rivals are under pressure of winning every single match, including El Clasico.

Mourinho has finally found a way of restricting Messi's impact in derbies. Doing that, he has already completed the toughest task in El Clasico.

Having said all of that, I expect him to finally prove he's indeed a better tactician than Guardiola.

Interesting fact: Mourinho has won three IFFHS World's Best Club Coach of the Year awards, while Guardiola has "only" two.

Real Madrid Will Win

Real Madrid are finally looking capable of beating their archrivals. Now, the most important thing for them is to prepare themselves mentally for this match.

Despite their woeful record in recent El Clasico clashes, I really can't see Los Blancos losing this one.

They have been working hard throughout the season, and I expect that work to finally pay off in this season-defining match.

Interesting fact: Even though they have already played El Clasico five times this season, Real Madrid are yet to record a win.