Barcelona vs Real Madrid Prediction - Soccer Picks 10/28/23

Barcelona (7-3-0) vs Real Madrid (8-1-1)

Saturday, October 28, 2023 at 10:15 am (Estadio Olímpico)

Barcelona +162/Real Madrid +180 - Over/Under: 2.5 Click Here for the Latest Odds

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The 255th edition of El Clásico between eternal rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid will take place on Saturday, October 28, 2023, in Round 11 at Estadio Olímpico. Only a point separates these teams, and Barcelona will be looking to leapfrog Real Madrid in La Liga standings with a win here. On the other hand, Los Blancos are hoping to hand Barça their first defeat of the season. Make sure to read our Barcelona vs Real Madrid betting preview and prediction.

Barcelona (Form and News)

For the fourth consecutive year, late October sees the first El Clásico of the season in La Liga (LL) as Barcelona welcomes Real Madrid. Both teams are hoping to make a significant early impact. Although Madrid have a slight edge in the LL head-to-head statistics (W77, D35, L74), Barcelona might claim bragging rights after their 2-1 victory in the previous season's fixture, which took them one step closer to their 27th league title.

A repeat of that victory would put Barcelona ahead of Madrid in the table. Barcelona are the only team yet to lose a LL fixture this season (W7, D3). After their 2-1 Champions League win over Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday, they remain unbeaten in all competitions this season (W10, D3). Here you can see my prediction of that match.

Barcelona won all five La Liga home fixtures this season, four of them to nil. However, the last three of those victories required goals after the 75th minute. Barcelona's injury problems mean that 17-year-old Marc Guiu could be among a number of young stars featuring in the game.

Player to watch: Ferran Torres scored the opening goal in two of Barcelona's previous four matches. He has three direct goal contributions (G2, A1) in his last three league matches against Real Madrid.

Jules Kounde (knee), Pedri (injury), and Sergi Roberto (foot) are out injured. Robert Lewandowski and Frenkie de Jong are both questionable with ankle injuries.

Real Madrid (Form and News)

Real Madrid, who rested some key players in a midweek Champions League game, beat Braga 2-1 on Tuesday and have lost only one competitive fixture this season (W11, D1). Rodrygo ended a lengthy goal drought by opening the scoring, and with the fully recovered and revitalized Vinícius Júnior assisting the winner, the visitors appear to be firing on all cylinders ahead of one of the biggest fixtures on their calendar.

Manager Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed that Jude Bellingham's late withdrawal was not due to a serious injury, although even he could not force victory against Sevilla (D 1-1) in their last away league game. Nevertheless, Los Blancos have good recent memories of Barcelona, having lost only one of the last six away H2Hs (W3, D2), including April's 4-0 Copa del Rey semi-final second-leg win.

Player to watch: Vinícius Jr netted the opener in Real's 4-0 win in the last term, and scored all three of his El Clásico goals to break the deadlock.

Ancelotti cannot count on Thibaut Courtois (knee) and Eder Militao (knee), who are injured and will not feature on Saturday. Daniel Ceballos (muscle) and Arda Guler (muscle) are questionable.

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Barcelona vs Real Madrid H2H Record

The rivals produced goals in both halves in each of the previous six La Liga encounters. Real Madrid won four, while Barcelona won two of those matches. None of the last seven H2Hs in the league finished without a winner.

Barcelona vs Real Madrid Odds

Barcelona are slight favorites at +162; a draw is +275, while Real Madrid to win can be backed at +180. For goals, Over 2.5 can be found at -145 and Under 2.5 at +143. For the both teams to score bettors, BTTS YES is at -179 and BTTS NO is at +175. Take a look at more La Liga betting odds here.

Barcelona vs Real Madrid Betting Pick

Barcelona’s games didn’t produce plenty of goals lately; only two of the last five produced Over 2.5 goals. However, the form and stats don’t matter a lot when it comes to El Clásico. Nine of the previous ten H2Hs gave 3+ goals, with both teams scoring in seven of them.

The hosts will likely play without top scorer Lewandowski, but there are players more than capable of scoring, and I am pretty sure Barça can bag a goal or two on Saturday. I believe the same will happen with Real Madrid, who scored in every game this season. In five of the last six, Los Blancos scored 2+ goals. Expect a spectacle at Estadio Olímpico.