This wasn't supposed to happen. Things aren't really going to plan for Real Madrid. Los Blancos, who were tipped to win the lot this season, have been miles off it. In fact, this, right now, is a football team on a steep decline. Madrid are out of the Champions League, slipping up in La Liga, and scraping narrow wins on moments of brilliance - as well as the odd slice of luck.
It is a fine thing, then, that Los Blancos are facing Barcelona this weekend. Clasicos are always tense occasions, and even the ones that don't mean as much always feel big - by virtue of rivalry alone. This one, though, holds a certain gravitas. There is not only a trophy on the line but also the sense of two teams at different junctures. Madrid are on the way down, broken when they were supposed to be chugging through the season. Barcelona, meanwhile, are on the ascent - and only likely to get better.
And after all of the pre-season talk about how Madrid were the ones to watch, and Barca were set up to fail, Saturday's final might well end up showing just how far Carlo Ancelotti and his troops have gone backwards.
