Robert Lewandowski, Alejandro Balde and Marc Casadó are all fit for Sunday’s Clásico (stream LIVE at 10:15 a.m. ET on ESPN+), but Barcelona coach Hansi Flick has said the trio will start on the bench against Real Madrid.
Lewandowski returned as a late substitute in the midweek Champions League defeat to Inter Milan after missing four games with a hamstring injury and has suffered no ill effects since.
Balde has sat out Barça’s last seven matches, including the Copa del Rey final and both Inter games, with a hamstring problem, while Casadó has been sidelined since March with a knee injury.
“As starters, I don’t think the moment is right for them,” Flick told a news conference when asked if Lewandowski or Balde could start the game at the Olympic Stadium.
“Ferran [Torres] in attack and Gerard [Martín] at left-back are doing very good. When you see Gerard, how he’s playing in a semifinal of the Champions League, it’s really great.
“Casadó is also available. But we have to take care. We have three more league matches after Madrid. Tomorrow is more for them to come on in the second half.”
Barça have the chance to move seven points clear with a win against Madrid, with just nine points left to play for after Sunday’s meeting between the Clásico rivals.
However, a Madrid victory would move them within one point of Barça and reignite the title race with three matches to go.
Flick says Barça have recovered from their painful European exit at the hands of Inter in midweek and are fully focused on beating Madrid for a fourth time this season, having already bettered them in LaLiga, the Copa del Rey final and the Spanish Supercopa final.
“After the defeat in Milan, everyone knows it’s not easy after the match, but we’re doing great,” the German coach insisted.
“We spoke about that and what we want to do in the next two weeks. We have four matches to go. Of course the Clásico is tomorrow and it is very important to show again how good we can play.
“Everyone knows in the Clásico you have to be on your highest level. We want to be active, see the intensity on the pitch and be dominant as normal. We know Real are a fantastic team, but we’re at home, we have our fans.
“Real will try everything to win it, like us. I don’t care about the table at the moment. We have to win. We want to win. This is our mentality, our attitude. This is how we will start the match. We focus on this match, nothing else.”