In a little under four weeks, the fans will be greeted by the biggest confrontation in the La Liga calendar as reigning champions Barcelona will welcome arch-rivals Real Madrid for the first El Clasico of the 2023/24 campaign. This match will be the first meeting between the two teams since the 2023/24 season began.

The competition, which is scheduled to take place at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys, has the potential to have a significant impact on the standings due to the fact that things are so close together near the top of the table right now.

It appears that Nacho will not be available for Real Madrid.

Real Madrid will be missing their captain Nacho Fernandez for the first El Clasico of the season, which will take place on October 28. This news may come as a relief to Barcelona.

According to MARCA, the reason for this is that the veteran defender was sent off during Real Madrid’s most recent league game against Girona, and as a result, he will likely be given a three-game suspension for his actions.

In the dying moments of the game, Nacho was awarded a red card for his vicious challenge on Portu, which resulted in the latter having to be carried off the field on a stretcher.

The experienced Spaniard was initially rumored to be facing a penalty of up to four games, but it now appears that he will only be suspended for a total of three matches. This led to the initial supposition.

As a result of this, Nacho won’t be available for any of Los Blancos’ upcoming three matches in La Liga, which are against Osasuna, Sevilla, and Barcelona.

Given that Eder Militao is already out injured and David Alaba is also on the sidelines, Nacho’s absence might come as a significant boost for Barcelona, as it would leave Carlo Ancelotti with only one fit senior center-back, although there is a possibility that Alaba could recover in time for the Clasico.

Who else will be missing from the event?

In addition to Nacho, Real Madrid will be without Thibaut Courtois, Eder Militao, and potentially Arda Guler for the journey to Barcelona, and David Alaba’s participation status is currently unknown.

In terms of Barcelona, they are anticipating that important midfielder Pedri will be healthy enough to play in El Clasico, and Raphinha is also anticipated to return from injury in time for the blockbuster matchup. However, it is still highly doubtful that Frenkie de Jong will be involved.