Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has insisted the club still have options after learning Karim Benzema will miss El Clasico on Sunday.
Benzema is the Spanish club's top scorer this season, and his 22 league goals put him comfortably clear of any other La Liga player. It was also his hat-trick which saw Los Blancos overcome Paris Saint-Germain in a comeback described as "magic" by former PSG boss Ancelotti.
The Frenchman won't feature against Barca, though, with the league leaders looking to extend their lead over Xavi's side. However, despite the setback, Madrid's manager is not too worried, drawing attention to the other attacking options he has at his disposal.
"Bale is an alternative to Benzema, as is Mariano, Jovic, Isco and Rodrygo," Ancelotti said ahead of the game, "There are a lot of options but I will choose the one I think is best for this match."
Benzema's expected absence comes courtesy of an ankle injury picked up in the Monday night victory over Mallorca. The 34-year-old scored twice, making it eight goals in the last five games for him in all competitions, but he will hope the injury doesn't keep him out for too long.
Madrid can still call upon Vinicius Junior, who has 14 league goals this term, but Bale, Mariano and Jovic are all yet to score in 2022. Indeed, all five of the players named by Ancelotti have fewer goals combined this season than Benzema has on his own.
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Real Madrid's win against Mallorca took them 10 points clear at the top of La Liga going into the weekend's fixtures. They are 15 clear of Barcelona, though Xavi's men have a game in hand.
The reverse fixture at Camp Nou in October came when Ronald Koeman was still in the Barca dugout, with David Alaba and Lucas Vazquez on target for Madrid before Sergio Aguero's late consolation made the scoreline more respectable. The two sides also met earlier this season in the Supercopa semi-finals, with Benzema one of three scorers for Ancelotti's side in January as they secured an extra-time victory over their fierce rivals in the semi-final before going on to beat Athletic Bilbao in the final.
"I think this injury [for Benzema] comes at a good moment, since we now have the two weeks of the international break for him to recover," Ancelotti said. "He'll be back stronger for the rest of the campaign."
Real Madrid are not back in Champions League action until after the international break, travelling to London for the first leg of their quarter-final with Chelsea on April 6 before welcoming the European champions to the Spanish capital six days later.
