Barcelona and Real Madrid's greatest sides of the modern era have both been defined by their midfielders.
The Masia-trained trio of Sergio Busquets, Andres Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez all provided an assist in the 2011 Champions League final, arguably the apex of Pep Guardiola's great Barcelona side. Later that same decade, Casemiro, Luka Modric and Toni Kroos started and won three consecutive Champions League finals for Real Madrid.
However, both clubs have made significant alterations to their respective midfields heading into the 2023/24 season.
Busquets was the last of that fiendish triumvirate to leave Barcelona this summer while Real Madrid have spent more than €125m on two new midfielders in their latest injection of youth.
Shortly after Jude Bellingham arrived in the Spanish capital, the Turkish playmaker Arda Guler snubbed Barcelona's advances to join Real Madrid. In response, Barcelona president Joan Laporta declared: "We have a better team than Madrid."
But is that actually the case when comparing the midfield of each side?
Barcelona midfielders for 2023/24 season
Spain's World Cup-winning manager Vicente del Bosque is often credited with the poetic truism: "When you watch the game, you don’t see Busquets; but when you watch Busquets, you can see the whole game." After signing for Inter Miami, you won't be able to find Busquets in a Barcelona game wherever you look next season.
Ilkay Gundogan arrived on a free transfer from Manchester City this summer and could potentially slot into the holding role which he fulfilled for much of the 2018/19 campaign.
However, Gundogan has spent his recent years as a box-crashing goal scorer. Frenkie de Jong was originally signed in 2019 as a potential successor to Busquets but has played his best football in Barcelona with the licence to roam forward. Former youth team player Oriol Romeu rejoined the club in July and is the most natural, if limited, defensive midfielder on the roster.
Xavi was the conductor of Barcelona's great midfield trio but has often instructed his side to morph into a square in the centre of the pitch, with the left winger drifting infield in possession. Gavi has filled that hybrid role most often, devilishly dovetailing with his compatriot Pedri as the leading prongs of the magic quadrilateral.
Potential lineups
De Jong - Gundogan - Pedri - Gavi
Romeu - Pedri - Gavi
Gundogan - Kessie - Pedri
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Real Madrid midfielders for 2023/24 season
Carlo Ancelotti has been experimenting with a number of options as he looks for a way to stuff as many talented players as possible into Madrid's new-look midfield. In a pre-season friendly against AC Milan, Madrid lined up with a central diamond that had Bellingham at its tip. The new arrival was flanked by Eduardo Camavinga and Federico Valverde while Toni Kroos anchored the midfield.
There has also been talk of a flat 4-4-2 while Ancelotti has conceded that the team could always revert to the trusty 4-3-3 that earned Madrid six trophies across the last two seasons.
Kroos will turn 34 next season and Modric is two months older than Wayne Rooney. Both undisputed icons have been handed one-year contract extensions for the coming campaign but will surely play reduced roles, especially after Brahim Diaz has returned from his loan spell and Dani Ceballos was handed a new four-year deal.
Barcelona rebuffer Arda Guler has been absent from the first round of tinkering with a minor injury but could slip into a number of positions when fit - although his layoff has hardly left Ancelotti short of options. The Italian tactician has as many as 11 different senior options for - at most - four midfield spots.
Potential lineups
Kroos - Valverde - Camavinga - Bellingham
Tchouameni - Guler - Modric - Diaz
Ceballos - Valverde - Bellingham
Who has the better midfield - Barcelona or Real Madrid?
Barcelona finished ten points clear of Real Madrid last season, effectively wrapping up the title in mid-March with a Clasico victory - ironically, Barcelona's two goals that day came from a pair of midfielders that were (and continue to be) below the first rung of options; converted fullback Sergi Roberto and wantaway Franck Kessie.
This dominance on the final standings gave Laporta the confidence to brag that his side "can continue to exercise hegemony in this competition". However, the loss of Busquets - even if he had fallen from his peak - cannot be understated.
Real Madrid felt the absence of their own defensive pivot last term when Casemiro joined Manchester United. After a season of adaptation, Aurelien Tchouameni should provide more consistent cover in that role to free up Camavinga and Kroos.
There is an argument that Barcelona's first-choice lineup of De Jong, Gundogan, Pedri and Gavi is theoretically better than what Madrid could offer. However, Ancelotti has such a wealth of versatile talent at his disposal that the sheer breadth and width of his potential midfields gives Madrid a slight edge in this comparison.
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This article was originally published on 90min as Who has the better midfield - Barcelona or Real Madrid?.
