With Lionel Messi ruled out of action for one month, it means next Sunday’s match between Barcelona and Real Madrid will be the first Clasico without either the Argentine or Cristiano Ronaldo for 11 years.
Messi scored and then went off injured with a fractured arm as Barca beat Sevilla at Camp Nou on Saturday, while Madrid are struggling to adapt to life without Ronaldo who joined Juventus in July.
And to find the last time neither Ronaldo nor Messi took part in the Clasico, one must look all the way back to December 2007 – nearly 11 years ago.
The Portuguese was still spearheading the attack at Manchester United, while Messi sustained a torn thigh muscle in the lead up to the match.
In a tight contest at Camp Nou, Real Madrid clinched a narrow victory courtesy of a Julio Baptista goal and went on to secure the La Liga title later that season, finishing 18 points ahead of Barcelona in third place.
Indeed, Messi has missed just two Clasicos since making his Blaugrana debut in 2004, neither of which have ended with a Barcelona win.
With 26 goals in Clasico, Messi is the highest scorer in history, eight strikes ahead of both Alfredo Di Stefano and Ronaldo (18 goals each).
And news that he will be unavailable on Sunday has hit hard at Camp Nou, while it is clear that in Madrid life without Ronaldo continues to disappoint after Los Blancos slumped to their fourth defeat in five games on Sunday.
