Match Today: Barcelona vs Real Madrid 05-04-2023 Copa Del Rey

Barcelona will host Real Madrid at the Camp Nou in the second leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final, where the winner will meet either Athletic Bilbao or Osasuna.

This will be the fifth edition of the iconic fixture in the 2022/23 season and it was Barcelona who so far outperformed their eternal rivals The Blaugrana won the first leg 1-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu at the start of March sealing three successive wins against Madrid for the Catalan giants Know the visitors Now that they will have to walk away from Barcelona with a win if they are to keep alive their hopes of winning their first Copa del Rey since the 2013/14 season.

Barcelona go into this match in strong form after a comprehensive 4-0 away win at Elche at the weekend. It was the fifth successive victory for the wealthy title winners, leaving them a full 12 points clear of second-placed Madrid in the La Liga standings.

Domestically, Barcelona did not lose at Camp Nou this season, with 12 wins and two draws in 14 matches across the league and cup combined. Xavi's team suffered defeat at home only once in all competitions this season, as it came at the hands of Bayern Munich in the group stages of the Champions League. Barcelona have been strong all season through their impressive defensive form which has notably seen the club concede just nine goals in 27 league matches so far.

Real Madrid will have the unenviable task of trying to break through Barcelona's backline but they will have to be confident after their 6-0 win over Valladolid on Sunday and striker Karim Benzema scored a first-half hat-trick in the space of just seven minutes.

In that match, the 35-year-old Frenchman occupied second place in the race for Pichichi this season, with 14 goals from only 17 league matches, and victory was a sure reaction after Los Blancos fell 2-1 in front of his opponents today on this ground before the international break. Madrid are now with three of their last four matches in all competitions and are still on track to get a double in the Champions League and the Cup. If they can successfully pass Wednesday's match in Catalonia, Barcelona enter this El Clásico match, where both teams are superior. Xavi will be absent from the quartet of Frenkie de Jong. Pedri, Ousmane Dembele and Andreas Christensen all missed out on victory over Elche too. The hosts are likely to offer another start for superstar Ansu Fati after the 20-year-old scored a goal at the weekend and La Liga top scorer Robert Lewandowski and one from Ravenna or Ferran Torres will form the top three.

Real Madrid are hoping to secure the services of defender Antonio Rudiger for the trip to Barcelona after the German missed Sunday's match due to a sore knee. Apart from full-back Ferland Mendy, coach Carlo Ancelotti has almost a full squad to choose from.

There shouldn't be too many surprises in Madrid starting in the 11th as the midfield is likely to be under the guidance of Modric, Kroos and Choameni while the trio of Benzema, Vinicius Junior and Valverde are likely to lead the line. Barcelona kept four clean sheets in the last five matches, while Real Madrid kept three clean sheets in the last five matches. Barcelona conceded only two goals in 14 local matches this season Barcelona's home matches Eight of 14 local matches on Barcelona's land ended with less than a goal this season Real Madrid ranks fourth in La Liga with a clean sheet away from home with six of 14 games.