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Expect goals in the battle of the big boys in tonight’s El Clasico

Real Madrid versus Barcelona is arguably the biggest match in club football and in recent seasons these games have reached an ever more frenetic pace, full of goals.

We should expect more of the same in tonight’s Copa del Rey clash between the arch-rivals.

Both teams have scored in the last ten meetings and the last nine have all had over 2.5 goals. Six of those have had over 3.5 goals.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have both scored in the last three matches, with the pair each hitting a brace in the last encounter in October.

Ronaldo has set a new El Clasico record by finding the net in six successive ties.

Four goals by Messi in Barca’s 5-1 over Osasuna on Sunday meant the Argentinean hitman had personally outscored 66 of the 97 clubs in Europe’s top five leagues. His haul of 33 league goals is 12 more than Ronaldo has managed this term.

It was Ronaldo’s extra-time winner that settled the final of the Copa del Rey between these sides in 2011 but the Catalans got revenge when knocking Madrid out last term.