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The football world will witness the latest episode of the Madrid Derby this Sunday as Real Madrid welcome neighbours Atletico Madrid to the Santiago Bernabeu. Ever since Atletico's resurgence under Diego Simeone, this has been a fiery affair, to say the least.
It's also a battle between 2nd and 3rd with Atletico going into the game four points ahead of Real Madrid. Thus, it is a game that Los Blancos simply cannot afford to lose.
They have only a one-point lead over fourth-placed Valencia and Zinedine Zidane's men will be wary of the implications of a defeat this week.
The reverse fixture, in November, saw the two sides play out a tightly-contested 0-0 draw.
So, ahead of the showdown, we look at an XI comprising players from both teams:
FORMATION: 4-3-3
Goalkeeper: Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid)
Despite Keylor Navas showing his heroics between the posts of late, Jan Oblak is a more stable option.
The 25-year-old has escalated into one of the top goalkeepers in the world, partly because of Diego Simeone's affinity towards defensive solidity and also because of his stunning performances.
This season he has been in between the posts 38 times for Atletico and has kept 24 clean sheets, which is sensational. He recently completed 150 appearances for the club and has kept 86 clean sheets, conceding only 90 goals. Quite brilliant.
Centre Backs:
Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid)
A no-brainer in this list, Sergio Ramos is without question one of the best defenders in the world, if not the best. His defensive attributes need no mention, but in the recent past, he has also made a habit of scoring goals at the other end of the pitch.
The club captain has more than 750 appearances for club and country and often provides much-needed aggression games such as this require.
He is coming off the back of a strong performance against Juventus in the Champions League and will be looking to inspire the team to victory this Sunday. Furthermore, he is up against Diego Costa so we can expect some fireworks.
Diego Godin (Atletico Madrid)
It was tough to choose between Godin and Raphael Varane but it is the Uruguayan who makes the cut. He has been one of the most vital figures for Atletico under Simeone.
The veteran defender has more than 500 caps for club and country and has been the underlying reason for Atletico's brilliant defensive record. This season, he has played in 36 games for Atletico, performing admirably in most of them. He will be tasked with containing the in-form Cristiano Ronaldo.
Full-backs:
Daniel Carvajal and Marcelo (Real Madrid)
The Madrid pair of Carvajal and Marcelo are in fine form and their importance has grown manifold over the past three years. Boundless energy and incredible work-rate combined with defensive solidity make these two players key figures in Madrid's game-plan.
Marcelo is the more adventurous one, with a more offensive output and his link-up play with Ronaldo is one of Madrid's greatest assets. The Brazilian found the back of the net against Juventus three days ago and like all Madrid players, is heading into the fixture high on confidence.
The two players have made a combined 69 appearances and have pitched in with 4 goals and 13 assists this season.
Midfield:
Casemiro, Kroos and Isco (Real Madrid)
An extremely tough call but I've decided on a midfield trio of Casemiro, Toni Kroos and Isco which will be too hot to handle for any opposition. Atletico's Saul has been very good all season and on any other day, I would have gone with him.
Casemiro continues to do the dirty work of breaking up attacks, winning the ball back and lunging into tackles and in a fixture of such high intensity, he will be required to keep his composure. He has won more tackles than any other player in this season's Champions League and will be looking to continue that trend for the remainder of the season.
Kroos, like Ramos, is an automatic selection and continues to do what he does best - control the tempo of the game and initiate attacks from deep.
Kroos' pass completion rate since 2012 is scarily good:
The third man in our midfield is none other than Isco. It's common-sense that you find a place for a player of his calibre, but Zidane has overlooked this gem of a footballer many a time this season. However, Kroos has slowly climbed his way back in to starting contention. He had a 100% pass accuracy midweek against Juventus which goes to show his class.
He has 7 goals and 8 assists to his name this season. His movement between the midfield and forward lines, his positional awareness and the creative influence he can assert will have a huge say in deciding this week's winner.
Forwards:
Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
The man is on fire at the moment and Real Madrid fans around the world will be praying that this form lasts for a while longer.
He has been in stupendous touch since the turn of the year and has scored more goals than any other player in Europe's top 5 leagues in 2018. He raises his level in derbies like these, where everything is at stake and the onus is on him to provide the brilliance.
Don't be surprised if he pulls off another magical moment like he did in midweek!
Diego Costa and Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid)
A duo that complements each other very well. Griezmann's grace and creativity combines well with Costa's aggression and ruthlessness in front of goal.
Costa had to wait until January for his second debut because of a transfer ban following his move from Chelsea. He has taken the lead role like a fish to water and has scored 6 goals and set up 5 in 16 appearances across all competitions. He enjoys occasions such as this were the referee allows a bit of extra-physicality, and will be looking to cause trouble for Real Madrid.
After a relatively poor start to the season, Griezmann has found his feet this year and the arrival of Costa has also given him a boost. It will be his 200th appearance for Atletico this week and he will want to make the day extra special by helping them to a win. He has registered 24 goals and 13 assists this campaign and Simeone will be banking on him to provide the goods in Sunday's affair.
