Eric Abidal hasn't seen much of the pitch since retiring from football in 2014. Based on his latest comments about Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, he hasn't seen much of Real Madrid, either.
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In an interview with Gol TV (via Daily Mail), the former Barcelona defender insisted that Benzema is Madrid's most important player, not Ronaldo.
"Benzema is the man I'd sign from Madrid if I were at Barca because for me he is Madrid's most important player right now," Abidal said. "If you take Benzema away from Real Madrid, then they would continue scoring goals, but not as many as they do with Karim in the team. He's a very complete player and other players [play] well in Madrid when Karim is there."
"So yes, if I have to sign one person, it would be him. And not just because he is my friend and my compatriot, but because of his qualities."
Clearly, Abidal's bias came into play when differentiating between the two Galacticos, much like his bias to his former club when asked about a prediction for this Sunday's match.
"I think it will finish 3-1 to Barca," he added. "I think Neymar, Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez will each score, though I'd like Javier Mascherano to get a goal for the club. Barca are doing much better than at the start of the season, when they struggled a little bit. Now in 2015, everything's looking impressive and hopefully that continues until the end of the season."
El Clasico will be held at the Camp Nou on Mar. 22. Below are projected lineups for both teams.
Barcelona's Projected Lineup (4-3-3): Bravo; Alves, Pique, Mascherano, Alba; Busquets, Rakitic, Iniesta; Neymar, Messi, Suarez.
Real Madrid's Projected Lineup (4-3-3): Casillas; Marcelo, Ramos, Pepe, Carvajal; Modric, Kroos, Isco; Ronaldo, Benzema, Bale.
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