There are some intense rivalries throughout world football, but no rivalry is as heated or as hyped as the Clasico between Barcelona and Real Madrid. This season, the intensity figures to ramp up to sky-high levels given the clubs' new-look lineups that boast what could be considered two of the most potent attacks in football history. Barcelona has a dangerous attacking group that includes Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez, while Madrid is in its second consecutive season with Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale playing together on the team's front line.
Both sets of players are featured on the front line of 4-3-3 formations, and that symmetry allows for a natural comparison of how these front lines stack up. This comparison is still fresh, as Suarez is set to make his Barcelona debut in Saturday's Clasico, while Bale is unlikely to recover from a glute injury in time to play. However, overall it is clear that these superstar attacking trios will dictate their respective team's domestic and European success this season.
Here is a look at how these talented trios compare against each other on multiple levels, including their combined ability to create scoring chances, finish scoring chances and their overall positional versatility.