El Clásico, position by position: the middle of the pitch

Matchday 28 of the Liga BBVA will offer a match to be remembered when FC Barcelona and Real Madrid play one another at the Camp Nou. With both sides aiming to get the top spot in the league table, LFP.es is taking advantage of the situation to analyse each side line by line. This time round we are looking at midfields.

Passes

For many, the middle of the pitch is the key line for creating play in a team. To do that, it is essential that the players who comprise the line, have enough quality to link-up. In this regard, the statistics are extremely even, as Barcelona's starting midfield have made 3,673 passes compared to Real Madrid’s 3,629. The outstanding midfielders in relation to this statistic are Sergio Busquets with 1,532 passes and Toni Kroos, with 1,652 passes.

Rakitić and Isco are the players from El Clásico who provide the most assists

Assists

Almost as important as scoring a goal, is being able to create a chance for a team mate to finish. Often, it is much harder to filter the final pass through that to finish in front of goal. The trio of midfielders formed of Andrés Iniesta, Ivan Rakitić and Busquets have made eight assists so far this season, Rakitić is the one who really stands out with his six assists. In turn, Luka Modrić, Isco and Kroos have made a total of 17 assists this season for Real Madrid. Isco has provided the most assists, eight.

Winning the ball back

Midfield players are also required to make a defensive effort. The ball recovery statistics are once again practically even between the two sides. The Barcelona midfield have made 159 ball recoveries for their side, thanks to 42 from Rakitić, 25 from Iniesta and 92 and Busquets. In turn, Real Madrid's starting midfield have won the ball back 158 times, only once less than the Catalans. These are divided between the 70 that Kroos has won, Isco’s 50 and Modrić's 28.

Goals

The key football statistic, goals, and this is the section where these sides most stand out. FC Barcelona and Real Madrid are the two highest goalscoring sides in the Liga BBVA with 78 and 77 goals respectively. However, the midfields are not outstanding in this regard, as the Barcelona trio have scored five goals (four from Rakitić, one from Busquets and none from Iniesta). The Madrid midfield have also scored five (three by Isco, one by Kroos and another by Modrić).