Ancelotti: Neymar over Bale, Rakitic over Kroos

Former Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti surprised some people when previewing the Clasico for Sina Sports. The Italian picked a combined Madrid-Barcelona XI and it features 4 Barcelona stars, two Madrid men and five positions drawn.

Ancelotti went for Pique ahead of Pepe, Busquets ahead of Casemiro, Rakitic ahead of Kroos, and Neymar before Bale. He preferred Marcelo to Jordi Alba and Sergio Ramos to Mascherano. In the other positions he was drawn. 

This is the team: 

Bravo-Keylor Navas (Draw) - Both are having a good season, although maybe Keylor has been more crucial to Madrid.

Dani Alves-Carvajal (Draw) - They have a good attacking capacity, they need to pay attention in defence, especially Dani Alves.

Gerard Pique-Pepe (Barcelona) - Pique's season is excellent. He's concentrating and making all decisions accurately. Pepe needs more continuity but his speed and talent is important.

Mascherano-Sergio Ramos (Madrid) - Mascherano knows how to play this position well despite being a midfielder, but Sergio Ramos is the heart of Real Madrid and always key in these type of games.

Jordi Alba-Marcelo (Madrid) - On paper they are very similar. However the influence of Marcelo at Madrid is bigger than Alba's on Barcelona. 

Busquets-Casemiro (Barcelona) - No doubt, Busquets is one of the best central-midfielders in the world. Casemiro has improved a lot recently but isn't as key.

Rakitic-Kroos (Barcelona) - The form of Rakitic is incredible, both mentally and physically. His contribution to Barcelona is essential. Kroos is vital but hasn't reached Rakitic's level. 

Iniesta-Modric (Draw) - Both are one of the best players in their teams, capable of taking on any game, they are the best players their team-mates could ask for.

Neymar-Bale (Barcelona) - The growth of Neymar this season is evident. His form is spectacular, and you see his importance to the team. Bale is decisive for Madrid but has lost a lot games through injury. Right now, Neymar is better. 

Luis Suarez-Benzema (Draw) - They are different types of forwards. Suarez is the class of striker just born to score. Lots of mobility and can upset any defence. He's red-hot right now. Benzema is good too, although he could score goals sometimes. In other aspects of the play he has a very important influence. It's a tough decision. 

Messi-Cristiano (Draw) - What can I say? Both are very good, they are the best players in the world.