El Clásico, position by position: defence

Matchday 28 of the Liga BBVA is approaching, and with it Spanish football's El Clásico. Real Madrid travel to Catalonia to take on the league leaders: FC Barcelona. It's a crunch date circled in red on all of the players' calendars. Each must be focused and give everything for their team in this clash, and LFP.es analyses each position on the park. In this edition, the defence.

Clearances
A secure defence equates to a winning team, given that the fewer goals you concede, the more chances you have of emerging victorious. In this aspect, the Barcelona defence have made 175 clearances compared to Real Madrid's 226. Gerard Piqué, with 86, and Sergio Ramos, with 77, are the two defenders who have brought the most to their sides in this aspect.

Aerial duels won
Aerial play is a key component of football for sides around the world. Their ability at keeping out set pieces and crosses is important for the security that they offer their side. The defensive pair formed by Piqué and Javier Mascherano have won a total of 51 aerial duels against opponents, while the pair comprised of Ramos and Pepe, with 120, have been the busier at this facet of play.

Goals from the defence
Defenders are charged with keeping out goals, but they also score them, and if they can do both then your side is on the way to a win more often than not. Both sides have great players in each of these aspects; players known worldwide for their goalscoring ability.

The Catalan side's defence has hit five goals this season, with four from Piqué and one by Jordi Alba. Meanwhile, Ramos is Madrid's top defensive scorer with three, and Pepe has one more. In total, Luis Enrique's side have the most goals from the back when looking at the usual backline of Dani Alves (0), Gerard Piqué (4), Javier Mascherano (0) and Jordi Alba (1).

Cards
Cards, be them yellow or red, are an inevitable part of the game. In total, the aforementioned Barcelona back four have received 21 cards; 19 yellows and two reds – one for Mascherano and another for Alves. Meanwhile, Carlo Ancelotti’s usual back four (Dani Carvajal, Pepe, Ramos, Marcelo) have 23 cards this campaign, none of which have resulted in a sending off.