The trouble with the 'clásico' (Barcelona v Real Madrid, in case you didn't know) is that in the week preceding this apocalyptic fixture everything seems conditioned by its looming presence. It might have been better for the clubs themselves to have played the game on a weekend which neither preceded nor succeeded a Champions League midweek, but the gods of destiny preferred to keep things boiling over, sitting up there in the clouds this summer, poring over the fixture list. As such, it's even managed to silence the Hand of Henry controversy, by far this past week's juiciest talking point.

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