Barcelona travel to Real Madrid in the first leg of the Copa Del Rey semi-final on Thursday evening in what promises to be a blockbuster showdown.

The LaLiga leaders progressed through to the semi-final stage after their 1-0 victory against Real Sociedad in the quarter-finals, with Ousmane Dembele scoring the winner.

Barcelona have only won twice in their last five games in all competitions and are coming into the game off a defeat to Almeria. 

As for Carlo Ancelotti's side, Los Blancos defeated rivals Atletico Madrid 3-1 in the last round, when Rodrygo, Karim Benzema and Vinicius Jr all scored. They are coming into the match off a 1-1 draw against Atletico in their derby clash. 

Sportsmail breaks down everything you need to know ahead of Real Madrid's meeting with Barcelona, including start time, TV channels and team news.

Alvaro Rodriguez's goal earned Real Madrid a draw in their last league game against Atletico

When is Real Madrid vs Barcelona?

Real Madrid will face rivals Barcelona on Thursday evening, with the game kicking off at 8pm.

The clash between the two Spanish giants will be held at the Santiago Bernabeu as Ancelotti's side look to make home advantage count. 

Real Madrid fans will be optimistic heading into the clash with Barcelona having won three of the last five meetings with their rivals.

Madrid's last win against Barcelona came back in October as Karim Benzema, Federico Valverde and Rodrygo all scored in a 3-1 win for Ancelotti's side.

But Xavi's side won the last meeting back in January in the Supercopa de Espana final, with Gavi, Robert Lewandowski and Pedri netting in a 3-1 win for Barcelona. 

How to watch

The El Clasico clash between Madrid and Barcelona will be shown live on BT Sport 1. Coverage is due to get underway at 7.45pm.

The game will also be streamed on the official BT Sport app.

Highlights will be uploaded to the official BT Sport YouTube channel after the match.

Sportsmail will also be providing live coverage of Real Madrid vs Barcelona, so you can keep up-to-date with all the latest developments here.

Team News

Real Madrid are set to be without defender David Alaba for the clash after the defender was ruled out for a month after picking up a hamstring injury in the win over Liverpool.

Ferland Mendy is also unavailable due to injury, meaning Nacho could start at left-back.

Luka Modric is expected to start in midfield alongside Toni Kroos and Aurelien Tchouameni.

As for Barcelona, Xavi's side will be without Lewandowski after he sustained a hamstring strain in Sunday's shock defeat to Almeria. 

In his absence, former Manchester City player Ferran Torres could start. 

What's been said? 

Heading into the epic showdown with Madrid, Xavi believes Thursday's opponents will be the favourites as they are the current holders of the league and Champions League.

'For us it is a cup semi-final and it is has an extra element because it is a Clasico,' he said.

'For me, Madrid continues to be the favourite because they are champions of the league and the Champions League, regardless of the injuries or what happened in the Super Cup, which could have been an exception because we did well.' 

Real boss Carlo Ancelotti said his side are preparing for the game 'full of confidence' as they look to progress through to the final.

'We are preparing for the match with confidence. We have to play a complete game offensively and defensively and we are looking forward to playing because these are the most beautiful duels,' Ancelotti said.

'We are very close to reaching the final and there are many things to enjoy.' 

Ancelotti has also reflected on the last meeting with Barcelona and believes that if his team repeat the same mistakes, they will get punished. 

'We have evaluated previous games against Barcelona and if we repeat the mistakes of the last game it will affect us but I don't think it will happen again,' he added. 'We are close to winning a competition that is important for us.'