By Derek Allen
April 1 2006

David Beckham looks like he'll be fit for this, and his colleagues will take heart from the fact that Barcelona's form has been a bit hit and miss too recently. By Derek Allen of Bettingzone.co.uk



'El Clasico' is never short on excitement, and this one promises plenty of action too, with Barca looking to increase their lead at the top of the Primera Liga, while Real Madrid try to cling onto fast-fading title ambitions.

Madrid will be looking to make amends for an embarrassing defeat in this fixture earlier this season at the Bernabeu, when two goals from Ronaldinho helped the Catalan raiders to a 3-0 win.

But that's a big ask, because Barca have been in fine form at the Nou Camp this term - they've only lost once there to date in the league.

No side has been more prolific in front of their own fans either - Barcelona have hit 40 goals in 15 games, which is bad news for Madrid, despite their tighter defensive performances away from home this season.

The visitors certainly blew Deportivo away last weekend, but that was only their second win in six attempts, and question marks must remain over Madrid's ability to deal with a high-profile fixture such as this.

David Beckham looks like he'll be fit for this, and his colleagues will take heart from the fact that Barcelona's form has been a bit hit and miss too recently.

Although they've failed to win either of their last two away games, things have still looked stable at the Nou Camp.

The Catalans should also have chalked up a cricket score against Benfica in the Champions League in midweek, and would have done with a little more luck in-running.

If Barcelona perform like that again here, it could be curtains for Madrid.



In Italy, there's some mileage in hunting up a surprise in Serie A - so get on Treviso to secure a draw against Juventus at the Stadio Tenni.

At first glance this probably seems plain silly - after all, this one pitches top against bottom.

But think about it. After Juve's midweek fiasco against Arsenal, why would you want to take odds-on about them winning here?

The Old Lady has had a pummelling in the press after the 2-0 defeat at Highbury, and with the return leg coming up, Fabio Capello could well batten down the hatches in a bid to avoid more trouble.

A draw would do no real damage to Juve's Scudetto aspirations, and with Alessandro del Piero and Pavel Nedved missing, they'll probably be satisfied with a point.

Treviso will fancy their chances of getting something here too - even if they're on their way down into Serie B.

The minnows will know both Messina and Parma have held Juventus lately, which should offer crumbs of comfort to the hosts, who've lost six of their last seven games in Italy, and are missing star striker Antonio Filippini here.

Yes, it's a long shot - but Treviso sorting a stalemate is worth a dabble all the same.

In the Bundesliga, nibble away at Hamburg, because they could be about to become the first side to win at Schalke this season.

The hosts will be tired after Thursday night's UEFA Cup run-in with Levski Sofia, while Hamburg will want to bounce back after a disappointing display against Borussia Dortmund last weekend.

A positive result either way would enable one of these two to continue to chase the automatic Champions League spot, but preference is for the visitors.

They'll be fresher, and also nailed Bayern Munich 2-1 on the road recently, a result which should more than command our respect.