Thibaut Courtois ruled out of El Clasico with flu; Dani Olmo expected to be out for around a month

Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois was ruled out of Sunday night's La Liga El Clasico at Camp Nou against Barcelona after contracting the flu. Illia Voloshyn has been called up to the squad as his replacement.

Barcelona will be without midfielder Dani Olmo after he suffered a left adductor injury in Tuesday's 4-2 Champions League defeat to Paris Saint-Germain. Olmo was forced off in the 27th minute following a collision with PSG midfielder Vitinha and was replaced by Fermin Lopez. "Tests carried out confirm that Dani Olmo is suffering from an injury to his left adductor muscle. The player is expected to be out for around a month," Barcelona said.

Real Madrid confirmed Courtois' withdrawal shortly before the meeting, issuing a club statement. "Courtois is a late withdrawal from tonight's La Liga match between Real Madrid and Barcelona due to the flu. Illia Voloshyn has been called up to the squad in his place," the club said.

The match carries clear league implications: a Barcelona victory would extend their lead over Real Madrid to nine points, while a Real win would cut the gap to three points. Real have lost six of their last seven Clasico encounters.

The fixture also marks the return of Jose Mourinho to the Clasico spotlight; the Portuguese manager, 63, has faced Barcelona 27 times and managed Real Madrid in 17 Clasicos during his first spell at the club. Mourinho was appointed by Real Madrid president Florentino Perez in 2010 to challenge the Barcelona side led by Pep Guardiola. Although Mourinho won just one of his first 10 Clasicos, he finished his first spell with an unbeaten run of five matches against Barcelona, recording three victories during that stretch.

Real have suffered two defeats in their opening nine La Liga matches and their performances have drawn frequent whistles from their own supporters. Sunday's encounter could see as many as 14 new faces make their Clasico debuts; both clubs made six signings during the close season, while Barcelona have promoted two academy players to their senior squad.

With Courtois unavailable and Olmo sidelined, the Sunday night Clasico at Camp Nou presents immediate standings consequences: a Barcelona victory would extend their lead to nine points and a Real Madrid win would reduce the deficit to three.