El Clasico: Will Lionel Messi be fit? How will Rafa Benitez cope under pressure?... 10 key questions for Real Madrid and Barcelona

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Real Madrid host Barcelona in El Clasico this weekend
It is Los Blancos boss Rafa Benitez' first Clasico in charge of the club
Lionel Messi's late fitness test will dictate Barca's starting line-up
Equally, whether Karim Benzema plays will be key for Madrid
The fixture will influence the title race, but not necessarily decide it
Real Madrid vs Barcelona - 10 shocking moments ahead of El Clasico

Published: 05:57 EST, 20 November 2015 | Updated: 07:47 EST, 20 November 2015

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It's the first El Clasico of the season and the first for Rafa Benitez in charge of Real Madrid.

What does he need to do to make sure it's not his last? And how will Barcelona boss Luis Enrique face the game against a new rival?

Here Sportsmail takes you through the key 10 questions ahead of the iconic La Liga fixture...

Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale (left) tussles for possession with team-mate Pepe in training

Luis Enrique has tinkered less with his line-up this season. Does he know his team going into this one?

Lionel Messi's fitness is the key to everything. If he starts then it will be pretty much Barca's strongest side bar Ivan Rakitic who doesn't look like he is going to be fit and will be replaced by Sergi Roberto in midfield.

If Messi starts on the bench then Sergi Roberto will play further forward alongside Luis Suarez and Neymar and Javier Mascherano will be drafted into midfield with Jeremy Mathieu or even Thomas Vermaelen coming into his central defensive berth.

Whether or not star player Lionel Messi (left) is fit for Barcelona, will dictate their starting line-up

And what will Rafa Benitez' first Clasico line-up look like?

For Benitez the doubt is over Benzema. If the Frenchman is over his hamstring niggle and in the right frame of mind to start then he will join Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo up front in a 4-3-3 leaving Rafa to pick three from James Rodriguez, Toni Kroos, Isco, Luca Modric and Casemiro in midfield.

If Benzema can't start then Benitez' selection job gets easier because Bale and Ronaldo will play up top and he can pick a midfield quartet.

Real Madrid manager Rafa Benitez is yet to confirm whether or not he will play striker Karim Benzema (left)

What will Benitez' tactics be?

Like most managers who coach Real Madrid he will be torn by the way he wants to approach the game and the way the club, the supporters and the president want him to approach it.

Most coaches in their first Clasico tend to do it the 'Madrid way' and then if it goes wrong they can do it their way next time.

Jose Mourinho tried to do it the 'club's way' in his first Barca-Madrid and lost 5-0. From there on, it was nearly always his way.

Benitez would love to sit deep and hit Barca on the break but he is obliged to take the game to them, especially at home.

Los Blancos' France international defender Raphael Varane (centre) leads his team in a jog in training

Real Madrid striker Cristiano Ronaldo works on his shooting in training ahead of El Clasico this weekend

Who goes into the game with more confidence?

Barcelona have kept three consecutive clean sheets, are top of the league, and they have done it all without their best player while Madrid lost 3-1 in their last game to Sevilla.

But both sides know that form going into the Clasico counts for very little however. In fact it's often the case that the team who comes into the game in a worst state takes all three points. Barca were unbeaten last October when the came to the Bernabeu and lost 3-1.

While Messi has been injured, his team-mates Luis Suarez and Neymar have been on a hot run of form

Will this game go along way to deciding the league?

Not really. In the last four seasons the team that has won the Bernabeu Clasico has NOT ended up winning the league. What it will do is pile an enormous amount of pressure on Benitez if they lose.

They will be six points behind Barca, he will have failed his first big test, and his job will be on the line.

Benitez, who took over at Madrid in the summer, is under huge pressure to defeat rivals Barcelona

What is the biggest pre-match boost that Madrid could have?

Hearing that Benzema is 100 per cent fit. Real are a different side when he is fit and on form. He glues that forward line together playing the clever little passes that feed Bale and Ronaldo and opening up the space that they both love to run into.

He has not played since early October and his off the pitch problems are well documented – some players respond to pending court cases by playing the best football of their lives, others struggle.

Benzema's off-field problems could help or hinder his performances on the pitch

What is the biggest pre-match boost that Barca can have?

The obvious answer would be that Messi can start. Not just because it means they have their talisman back but because it means Enrique doesn't have to mess around too much with the rest of the team.

He can play his strongest back four and leave Sergio Busquets where he is most effective in the centre of midfield.

If Messi is out it will not be the end of the world though – Suarez and Neymar have been in great form without him and the Argentine also has a great record from the bench scoring 31 goals in 64 games as a substitute.

Messi, pictured earlier this season, jinks his way past Atletico Madrid's Filipe Luis (right) in a league clash

What will the atmosphere be like?

As always with the Clasico there will be very few away supporters. Around 450 will be perched high in one corner of the Bernabeu.

The mood will be more sombre than usual after the events in Paris last week – the home supporters have decided not to put up the traditional mosaic up when the two team come out because they feel the message they had planned - presumably one about going into battle - was inappropriate.

There will also be a minute's silence before kick-off. Once things get underway the atmosphere will build because Madrid know they need to win.

As always, Real Madrid supporters will attach a particular significance to the match against Barca

How drastic are the extra-security measures that have been talked about?

The gates will be open three hours before kick off as opposed to two and supporters have been urged to arrive early and without bags to speed the checking process that will take place at two extra security perimeters around the ground.

There will be 1,200 police officers on duty instead of the usual 500.

In light of recent terror attacks in Europe, Real Madrid will ramp up security at the Santiago Bernabeu

Back to the game and the most important question - who will win?

Sergio Ramos is playing with a pain-killing injection for a shoulder injury at the moment. Facing Suarez and Neymar – and with the prospect of Messi coming into things late on – is not ideal. Benzema is also not in the best shape going into such an important match.

Those two players are very important for Real Madrid and to make up for the fact that they are not 100 percent others will have to step forward.

Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos (right) will take a pain-killing injection in order to play at the weekend

Bale, who joined Madrid in a £85million move from Tottenham, looks ready and raring to go in training

Gareth Bale has been flying in training this week – he has ony played 460 minutes this season (Ronaldo has played 890) so this is his moment to step forward and make the difference.

There is a sense that his credit from scoring those big goals in his first season has run out and he owes the club a big performance.

If he plays well, if James Rodriguez pulls something special out of his locker too, and if Neymar has come back from Brazil duty still feeling a little groggy, then Madrid could take all three points. A narrow Madrid win.