The Semifinals of the Spanish Copa del Rey sees Real Madrid and Barcelona meet for the third time this season. First was in the league at Bernabeu and the recent clasico super cup in Saudi Arabia. Both sides have already claimed one Clasico victory this season but it looks like Real Madrid would run away with this. I'm predicting a home win for the European Champions. This is why you should bet on Real Madrid to win;
[1] Real Madrid is in better form at the moment even though they trail by seven points in the league. A resounding 5-2 win against Liverpool at Anfield was enough reminder for whoever doubted Real Madrid's quality this season. The European champions have not lost any of their last six games with five wins in six matches. FC Barcelona failed to bounce back from the defeat against Manchester United as they lost by a goal to nil against Almeria. That was one of their worst performances this season and they look far from their best with shambolic displays in midfield and attack. At this point it is just a matter of time before Real Madrid overtakes Barcelona this season and a home win is my best prediction here.
[2] Another reason why the odds favors Real Madrid is due to squad fitness. FC Barcelona was dealt a huge blow last week when their key midfielder, Pedri Gonzalez was ruled out of this game. It got worse for the Catalans as Robert Lewandowski picked up a hamstring injury and is set to miss the third clasico of the season. FC Barcelona was already struggling to score goals and now they would be without their highest goalscorer. Real Madrid is having better luck as they are going to field their best XI, and the last time they did so, FC Barcelona lost 3-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu. With this Cup tie played over two legs, Real Madrid would need an advantage ahead of the final showpiece at Camp Nou and I'm confident that they would win at home to Barcelona.
In all fairness, Real Madrid has a very easy job with Robert Lewandowski and Pedri ruled out for Barcelona. They have been playing better than Barcelona even without the injuries and this should end in a home win for Real Madrid.
