Karim Benzema could miss El Clasico

Ahead of the season's first El Clasico between Real Madrid and Barcelona, which will be played at the Camp Nou on October 28, the visitors might not have the services of their first-choice striker Karim Benzema as the Frenchman is out of action with an injury.

Julen Lopeteugi's men will be sweating on the fitness of some of their key players. Midfielder Isco, full-backs Marcelo and Dani Carvajal are already on the sidelines due to respective injuries and they have found some new companions in forwards Benzema and Gareth Bale as the pair injured themselves in Real Madrid's 1-0 loss against Deportivo Alaves, which was also their last league game before the international break.

In spite of his injury, Bale was included in the Welsh squad but did not feature in the friendly game against Spain last week and is likely to be fit in time when the club action gets underway next week. Benzema, on the other hand, has suffered a hamstring injury and is likely to be out for 2-3 weeks.

With the El Clasico just two weeks away, it is highly unlikely that the Frenchman could be a part of the biggest match in LaLiga.

The striker started off the season on a positive note as he scored four goals in the first three matches and with that, he almost matched his entire haul from the previous season, when he scored just five times in the league.

After his braces against Girona and Leganes at the start of the season, he failed to find the back of the next in the next five games as Real Madrid as they lost twice and drew as many times in that duration.

Good news is that Isco and Marcelo have started their training and are expected to be match-fit for their league clash against Levante, which is also their final league match before they take on their arch-rivals.