Real Madrid may be out of the King's Cup but they have made their best league start in 17 years and go into Sunday's 'El Clasico' at Barcelona with a one-point advantage over the reigning champions.

Real defeated Racing Santander 1-0 on Saturday to wrestle top spot from unbeaten Barca - who drew 1-1 at Athletic Bilbao - and their haul of 28 points from a possible 33 represents their best start since the 1991-92 season.

Last season Real were nine points behind Barca going into the first Clasico in mid-December and lost 2-0 to leave them with too big a mountain to climb in the title race.

This season Real have the upper hand and a win over Barca at Camp Nou would see them move four points clear at the summit, but they have an important Champions League match at home to FC Zurich on Wednesday to get through first.

Real are level on points with AC Milan in Group C but Marseille are just a point behind so the nine-time European champions can't afford to slip up against the Swiss champions.

"We can't stop people talking about the Clasico but we must remain cool and concentrate on the Champions League first," said defender Raul Albiol.

"We are top of the league and have had a good run which is shown by the statistics."

Real struggled to overcome Racing and the home fans - still angry at the King's Cup exit to third-division Alcorcon - were not impressed by the workmanlike victory.

More to come - Higuain

Match-winner Gonzalo Higuain admitted Real were still not firing on all cylinders but said there was more to come from the new-look 'Galacticos'.

"There were a lot of changes at the start of the season and the team is taking one step at a time," said the Argentine.

"We will find the way we want to play - it is not a question of patience but rather a question of working hard."

Real have been without world record signing Cristiano Ronaldo for the past ten games as the Portuguese star has been ruled out with an ankle injury, but he is expected to be fit in time for the Barcelona clash.

In contrast Barcelona are sweating on the fitness of their star player Lionel Messi, after he came off in the Bilbao game with a thigh injury.

"I am never happy when someone is injured," said Albiol. "We may benefit from it because he (Messi) is an essential player for Barcelona and one of the best in the world, but Barca have enough good players to cover his absence.

"We must play well in order to win there."

Real lost both games against Barcelona last season, tasting a 2-0 defeat at Camp Nou before the unforgettable 6-2 thrashing at the Santiago Bernabeu.

"The Clasico on Sunday is a very important game," said Real's Dutch midfielder Roysten Drenthe.

"We have to show what Real Madrid are all about at Camp Nou."

Real coach Manuel Pellegrini has rotated his squad of late but competition for a place in the starting line-up against Barcelona is sure to be fierce.

"First we have the Zurich match, then the Clasico, which we all want to play in," said Argentine defender Ezequiel Garay.

"The coach will select those players that impress the most in training."

AFP

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