Barcelona and Atletico Madrid travel to Saudi Arabia this week to contest the semi-final of the Supercopa de Espana on Thursday evening.
Whoever prevails from the showdown in Jeddah will move on to face either Real Madrid or Valencia in Sunday's final, which will also be held at King Abdullah Sports City.
Match preview
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While Barcelona head into Thursday's encounter having put together a 12-match unbeaten streak, the pressure remains on Ernesto Valverde as he bids to win a third successive La Liga title.
Three draws have been recorded in four top-flight fixtures, leaving the Catalan giants remaining ahead of rivals Real Madrid on goal difference only.
The dismissal of Frenkie de Jong contributed to the 2-2 scoreline at Espanyol at the weekend, although Barcelona were again below par against their neighbours, who have spent time sitting at the bottom of the standings.
With a visit to Valencia to come before the end of the month, Valverde needs to ensure that his players have regained some form ahead of the trip to the Mestalla, starting with their upcoming clash with Atletico.
Only Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez have consistently produced the goods this season, with the pair having contributed 24 goals and 13 assists between them in Spain's top flight this season.
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Antoine Griezmann has also produced four goals and one assist from his last eight appearances, although the former Atletico man is still some way short of what is expected of him after his big-money move in the summer.
However, an occasion such as this one, away from the frequent spotlight in Spain, may be just what the attacker requires at this stage of the campaign.
Barcelona head into this contest looking to lift the trophy for the 14th time in their history - a haul which is in sharp contrast to Atletico, who have only emerged victorious on two occasions.
Their most recent success came in 2014, and Diego Simeone arguably finds himself in a position where he needs to deliver more silverware to continue his spell at Los Rojiblancos.
That said, Simeone also deserves credit for guiding his team back into the title race after too many draws were recorded during the opening months of the season.
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As well as securing the win required to earn a place in the Champions League last 16, Atletico have put together three victories in succession in La Liga, getting the better of Osasuna, Real Betis and Levante respectively.
While they would have been expected to see off that level of opposition, the run of triumphs has come on the back of just two wins from their previous 10 league matches.
Simeone will hope that the improvement is a sign of things to come in the bigger matches, at a time when the Argentine is also looking to freshen up his squad during the transfer window.
This competition is arguably low down on his list of priorities, although seeing off Barcelona on this stage would lay down a marker ahead of returning to league action next week.
Angel Correa and Alvaro Morata have played a significant part in getting Atletico back on track, with the pair netting two goals apiece in their last three outings.
Simeone needs club-record arrival Joao Felix to follow suit, however, given that the Portuguese youngster has scored just twice since the beginning of October.
Barcelona form (all competitions): WWDDWD
Atletico Madrid form (all competitions): LDWWWW
Team News
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Having missed a number of training sessions with a knee injury, Marc-Andre ter Stegen will not be involved on Thursday evening.
The goalkeeper is joined on the sidelines by Arthur and Ousmane Dembele, leaving Valverde to contemplate some rotation to his starting lineup.
Nelson Semedo and Samuel Umtiti are pushing Sergi Roberto and Clement Lenglet for a role in defence.
Atletico will be without Diego Costa for the trip to Saudi Arabia, while Sime Vrsaljko and Thomas Lemar are also expected to be absent.
Koke is likely to return to the first XI after missing the win over Levante, potentially as a replacement for Hector Herrera.
Barcelona possible starting lineup:
Neto; Roberto, Pique, Lenglet, Alba; Vidal, Busquets, De Jong; Messi, Suarez, Griezmann
Atletico Madrid possible starting lineup:
Oblak; Trippier, Felipe, Gimenez, Lodi; Correa, Partey, Saul, Koke; Felix, Morata
Head To Head
Barcelona head into this fixture having avoided defeat to Atletico in their last nine matches - a run which includes five wins and four draws.
However, Barca have not scored more than twice in any of those outings, with Atletico only losing by a two-goal margin on one occasion.
Atletico's last success against Barca came at the Vicente Calderon in the Champions League back in April 2016.
We say: Barcelona 3-1 Atletico Madrid
Despite the change in scenery for both clubs, we expect Barcelona's slight superiority to shine through. While the neutral venue should increase Atletico's changes, we are backing Messi and co to guide their side through to the final.
Darren Plant
