Barcelona: Andres Iniesta expecting pitch battle

Andres Iniesta Barcelona

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Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta insists Sunday’s clash with Real Madrid will be like a ‘war’ and feels his side can come away with all three points.

Barca, who are priced at 3.08 to win the match, head to the Santiago Bernabeu knowing that defeat will all but end their chances of retaining the La Liga, title as they will then be seven points behind their fierce rivals with just nine games to go.

There are still plenty of points to play for but, such is Real’s current form, it is unlikely that Carlo Ancelotti’s men will slip up twice before the end of the campaign.

The Catalans warmed up for the clash with a 7-0 thrashing of Osasuna at the weekend and Lionel Messi proved that his injury problems are now a thing of the past with yet another hat-trick.

Real, who are on offer at 2.27 to claim the spoils, ground out a 1-0 victory over Malaga and should not be taxed too much by their Champions League clash with Schalke on Tuesday night as they take a 6-1 lead into the second leg.

It looks set to be a fascinating encounter between the two giants of world football on Sunday night and Iniesta is confident that Barca can take heart from their last outing to win the battle in the Spanish capital.

“We have to go all out to win against Madrid,” said the Spain international. “We wanted to beat Osasuna while playing well and now we have to believe we can win at the Bernabeu.

“Real-Barca clashes are the football equivalent of war.”

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