Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo still dominate El Clasico... even if this could be the last year they meet each other while playing for Real Madrid and Barcelona

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For a while it seemed Saturday's Clasico would not be about the big two
But both men go into the game with a point to prove
Neither man has been at their best this season, with team-mates emerging
Both have more motivation than ever to write their name all over this fixture
This is also the first Clasico of the post Iker Casillas-Xavi Hernandez era

Published: 02:46 EST, 21 November 2015 | Updated: 06:44 EST, 21 November 2015

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For once it’s not about them… or maybe it still is.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have not been the stars of the season so far in Spain but just as it seemed the Clasico spotlight might be about to fall on other protagonists they return to centre stage.

On Friday, French media RMC Sport claimed that Paris Saint Germain Nasser Al-Khelaifi had met with Jorge Mendes on Thursday to discuss PSG signing Ronaldo. Also on Friday Luis Enrique confirmed that Messi was back from his 10 week lay-off and would almost certainly play a part in El Clasico.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo train ahead of their first meeting of the season, on Saturday evening

The pair have dominated El Clasico for several years, but this could be their last season doing battle

It could still be that both men are overshadowed. Ronaldo has not been on form of late, scoring in only six of the 19 games he has played this season and Messi, by Enrique’s own admission, is not going to be 100 per cent. But both will have more motivation than ever to write their name all over this fixture.

Ronaldo because he knows it could be his last home league Clasico for Real Madrid, and Messi because the feeling among those around the Argentine is one of suspicion that the tax investigation that will mean he has to take the stand in court some time next year has been at the very least encouraged by Madrid-based forces out to destabilize him and his club.

What better way to get his own back than by putting Real in its place on Saturday.

CRISTIANO RONALDO VS LIONEL MESSI - THE COMPLETE STATS BREAKDOWN
Crisitano Ronaldo	Current Season	Lionel Messi
15	Appearances	10
15	Starts	9
0	Substitution On	1
0	Substitution Off	1
1350	Minutes Played	790
13	Goals Scored	6
103.85	Minutes per Goal	131.67
46	Shots On Target	24
43	Shots Off Target	18
20	Blocked Shots	13
51.69	Shooting Accuracy	57.14
14.61	Shots to Goal Conversion Rate	14.29
2	Assists	2
22	Chances Created (inc assists)	21
483	Total Passes Made	575
81.16	Pass Accuracy	83.3
88.46	Pass Accuracy, Own Half	93.81
79.75	Pass Accuracy, Opponent's Half	81.17
21	Crosses & Corners	21
23.81	Cross & Corner Accuracy	23.81
2	Yellow Cards	0
0	Red Cards	0

Messi is suspicious that the tax investigation into his affairs has been encouraged by Madrid-based forces

The Argentine has extra incentive to perform against Real Madrid, even if he is not fit enough to start

Even in his absence, the Barcelona front three has been producing goals, but Messi's return will be a boost

Ronaldo likewise may feel he has an extra incentive. He has been criticised for failing to carry the team in the absence through injury of James Rodriguez, Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale – he could make the most of their return by getting back to the sort of goalscoring form that saw him put five past Espanyol earlier in the season.

Luis Suarez said on Thursday that he thought Neymar was now the second best player in the world.

The Brazilian has had a tough week with international duty and a toothache that needed treatment in Brazil. This could be the perfect moment for Ronaldo, who skipped Portugal duty, to make his mark.

He was given the weekend off last week but came in on Sunday anyway to work on his sprints – it’s been a while since he pulled away from anyone but Barca remains a rival that ought to suit him by leaving space for him to run in behind their defence.

Ronaldo, who came in for extra training during the international break, is hugged by James Rodriguez

Ronaldo has not been on form of late, scoring in only six of the 19 games he has played this season

With his star team-mates back, Ronaldo will hope to return to the form that saw his score five against Espanyol

Messi has scored 31 goals in 64 games as a substitute so even if his role is reduced to one of second half cameo it could still be an important one. He only had 30 minutes earlier in the season but it was still enough to score the winner in a 2-1 win over Atletico Madrid.

It seems that, for all that Neymar and Suarez have made the headlines in recent weeks and the return of Bale, Benzema and Rodriguez has been especially prominent in Madrid, this could still be about the big two - and that's big two meaning Leo and Cristiano, not Real and Barca.

In his only substitute appearance of the season so far, Messi came off the bench to score the winning goal

This will be the firs Clasico for 15 years without either Iker Casillas or Xavi Hernandez

It’s the first Clasico of the post Iker Casillas-Xavi Hernandez era. At least one of the two has featured in the Barca Madrid games for the last 15 years and they faced each other 26 times.

The post Ronaldo-Messi era is still not quite with us. Messi has 21 Clasico goals in 30 games, Ronaldo has scored 15 against the eternal rival.

On Saturday they will both have the chance to add to their tallies and swing the league in the direction of their team once more.