Barcelona vs. Real Madrid: El Clasico 2016 News, Preview, Live Stream, TV Info

Real Madrid can open up a nine-point lead over Barcelona if they beat them at the Camp Nou on Saturday in La Liga's first El Clasico of the season.

Los Blancos are unbeaten thus far in their campaign and have pulled away from the Blaugrana in recent weeks after the Catalan side were held to a draw in two successive league matches.

Viewers in the UK won't be able to watch the match live either on TV or online:

Read on for a full preview of the crucial clash, but first here are the schedule details and team news:

Date: Saturday, December 3

Time: 3:15 p.m. GMT/10:15 a.m. ET

TV: beIN Sports USA

Live Stream: beIN Sports Connect USA

Team News

According to the Telegraph's Callum Davis, Barcelona's front three—Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar—will all be available for the match, as should Arda Turan. Andres Iniesta could feature following his return to training, but Samuel Umtiti remains on the sidelines with a hamstring injury.

As for Real, they will be without Gareth Bale for the clash after he suffered a serious ankle injury, but Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema should be available, according to Davis.

Per Alvaro de la Rosa of AS, Alvaro Morata and Toni Kroos aren't likely to feature, though both are recovering well from a hamstring injury and a broken foot, respectively.

Predicted Barcelona lineup: Marc-Andre ter Stegen; Sergi Roberto, Gerard Pique, Javier Mascherano, Lucas Digne; Ivan Rakitic, Sergio Busquets, Andres Iniesta; Luis Suarez, Neymar, Lionel Messi

Predicted Real Madrid lineup: Keylor Navas; Dani Carvajal, Sergio Ramos, Raphael Varane, Marcelo; Mateo Kovacic, Luka Modric, Isco; Lucas Vazquez; Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema

Preview

El Clasico is often billed as a contest that boils down to Messi and Ronaldo, which is unsurprising given their status as the top two players in the world.

As OptaJose revealed, both have been in fine form in front of goal this season, with the Barcelona forward enjoying the edge:

Ronaldo has an outstanding record at the Camp Nou, though, per the UEFA Champions League's official Twitter feed:

How the pair play will naturally have a significant impact on the result, and if both are at their best, there could be plenty of goals involved. For Barcelona in particular, though, the rest of the team will be just as crucial.

The Catalan giants have failed to live up to their usual standard in recent weeks and were comprehensively outplayed by Real Sociedad in their last league outing.

Sky Sports' Guillem Balague and Spanish football expert Sergi Dominguez detailed the way in which they did so:

Barca lacked intensity and were dominated all over the pitch—if not for an excellent Messi goal and a fortunate offside call, they would have lost.

A repeat performance against a team of Real's quality would surely see the visitors come away with all three points.

However, Barcelona boss Luis Enrique has vowed his side will rise to the occasion, per ESPN FC's Dermot Corrigan:

His players won't be lacking for motivation against their old rivals, especially with the league title potentially in the balance.

They'll need to seriously improve on their collective performance, though, and avoid relying almost solely on Messi to bail them out if Real take the lead.

The absence of Bale's pace, work rate and quality in the final third will be a blow to the visitors, but in Lucas Vazquez, they have a capable replacement who has played well in recent weeks. Real will provide a real threat to Barca on the counter.

When the teams last met—at the Camp Nou in April—it was Los Blancos who emerged as 2-1 victors. Barcelona are more than capable of coming out on top on Saturday, but if their struggles continue, there may well be a repeat of that result.