Iniesta and Ramos, captains of the cordial Clásico
Back in 2011 the Clásicos were torrid affairs, but today Barcelona host Real Madrid in LaLiga with the friendships between the players of the two teams as a notable factor.
On 13 November, Iniesta, Sergio Ramos and Piqué proved that the atmosphere around the Clásicos had changed definitively. Far from the storm of 2011 the captains of Real Madrid and Barcelona, and the spiritual leader of the Catalan side wished each other well on social media as they battled to get fit for today's match.
Where before the Clásicos were a seething brew of resentment and bad blood, the Clásico of today brings together footballers from both sides who have great relationships.
Barcelona-Real Madrid: Spanish amigos
Among the Spaniards for example, it's well known that Sergio Ramos and Jordi Alba get on excellently, both being lovers of flamenco and with Seville as their common denominator. Morata, Isco, Carvajal, Alcácer, Nacho, Sergi Roberto and Denis Suárez all played together at some point in the Under-19s, Under-20s and Under-21s, under Lopetegui, between 2010 and 2014.
International bonds - harmonious Clásico
Neymar and Marcelo were spotted in the Brazil dressing room doing a Running Man Challenge. Cristiano, Pepe and André Gomes shared the Euro 2016 triumph together with Portugal, while Varane, Digne and Umtiti know each other well from the French national side, as do Ter Stegen and Kroos with Germany. Rakitic and Modric have been friends for a good while now, and they've been joined by Real Madrid's Kovacic. The Clásico is no longer the spiteful affair it was...
