The NBA And NHL Playoffs Are Fine And All, But The Rest Of The World Is Watching El Clasico Open Thread

Big game's about to start. (GolTV's pregame show starts at 3 p.m. eastern; game itself an hour later). FC Barcelona's beaten up enough on defense to give Real Madrid a legitimate shot at avenging their 5-0 throttling from earlier in the season.

Tricky spot, this game. Barca's pretty much got the league title wrapped up. They face one another in the Copa del Rey final on Wednesday. Then comes the UEFA Champions League home-and-home series, the biggest of the bunch. Still, it's the two best teams on Earth taking the pitch. (Fine, two of the top three if you're inclined to give an even-strength Man U more credit than they likely deserve). Anything can happen. Enjoy, if you're so inclined.

• El Clasico casts a spell on the globe and sends Spain in a tizzy [Star]

• El Clasico – Real Madrid vs Barcelona And 10 Things You Could Bet On [LiveSoccerTV]

• Real Madrid 200/1 To Thrash Barcelona 5-0 [Goal.com]

• Though the World Leader In Sports maintains otherwise, Cristiano Ronaldo is not the same as Ronaldo, but in this graphic, dutifully sent along by tipster Mark of Chicago, they seem to maintain that Ronaldo will appear in El Classico today. He won't. He's not on Real Madrid. He's retired.

• El Clasico - Real Madrid CF v FC Barcelona pre-match facts and stats [Crunch Sports]

• Mourinho tight-lipped ahead of 'El Clasico' showdowns [CNN]

• Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola: Real Madrid are favourites to win first El Clasico meeting [Goal.com]

• Four El Clasico clashes in eighteen days [Roar Sports]