Real Madrid vs Barcelona Isco? Kroos? Benzema?

Zinedine Zidane has a tough decision to make when Real Madrid take on Barcelona in next Saturday's Clasico, as Gareth Bale should be fit and could be in line for a start.

That, though, would obviously squeeze another player out of the starting XI and on to the bench.

But who?

Interestingly, the last time Bale started alongside both Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema was in the last LaLiga Clasico on April 23, only for the Welshman to suffer a fresh injury during the encounter.

Photo: Juan Aguado (MARCA)

Yet the BBC front three might not necessarily reappear in this Clasico, as Benzema is one of the candidates to be dropped.

Zidane, though, has strongly defended the No.9's recent performances, so perhaps another midfielder might be taken off the teamsheet.

That midfielder could be Toni Kroos or it could be Isco, the player who was often left on the bench during the heady days of the BBC.

That said, Isco has taken a step forward without Bale, aided by a new formation in which he plays a No.10 role behind two forwards.

Photo: Juan Nevado (MARCA)

Since the Welshman has been out of the team, Isco has provided eight assists and scored seven goals, while he was better than the average in terms of successful passes in the final third in 20 of those 30 games.

To drop Isco, then, would be a huge decision, but so would leaving out Benzema, Kroos or any other player.

Zidane certainly has some thinking to do after the Club World Cup.