3 unsung heroes who could decide El Clasico

Saturday's El Clasico could indicate whether Real Madrid will run away with the La Liga crown.

A win would extend Los Blancos' gap over Catalan rival Barcelona to nine points, a distance that could prove too wide to overcome in the coming months.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will surely star at the Camp Nou, but they'll need their supporting casts to help determine Saturday's outcome.

Here are three unheralded players who have the potential to decide this heated contest:

Lucas Vazquez

Patient for the few opportunities he's received, Lucas Vazquez is expected to start in place of the injured Gareth Bale.

And it's a chance the 25-year-old deserves.

Having made more substitution appearances (12) than any other Madrid player this season, Vazquez will offer manager Zinedine Zidane creativity and defensive cover - if not the directness and pace that mark Bale's game.

Vazquez's primary strength is his versatility: The Spaniard can play wide in a 4-4-2 formation or as a right winger in a 4-3-3 formation.

Even though he has just a single goal to his name in this campaign, the former Espanyol man can create chaos in the penalty area. He drew the foul that set up Ronaldo's winning penalty last Saturday against Sporting Gijon - the kind of industrious play that could give Barcelona fits.

Ivan Rakitic

Ivan Rakitic does all the grunt work for Barcelona, and it goes unnoticed. He's the one covering ground and feeding the machine that is the club's attacking trio.

His stats are solid, if unspectacular. With a passing accuracy of 87 percent, Rakitic is a reliable facilitator of possession. Beside Sergio Busquets - Barcelona's world-class pivot at the base of the midfield three - Rakitic has the option to get amongst the goals as well.

The Croatia international nodded in a header against Atletico Madrid in September, and although Barcelona failed to preserve the lead, Rakitic was clearly one of the best players on the pitch.

There are times when he can struggle to impose himself on the match, but he's proven he can show up in big moments.

Sergio Ramos

Only twice has Sergio Ramos missed El Clasico, and after avoiding a suspension for yellow-card accumulation last weekend, he's assured of yet another start at the Camp Nou.

He hasn't enjoyed a great season thus far - a knee injury forced the Madrid captain to miss more than a month of action - but his form hasn't affected his club's just yet.

Zidane's side has allowed the second-fewest goals in La Liga through 13 fixtures, one of the reasons it's gone unbeaten for 32 matches across all competitions.

Ramos' leadership abilities remain intact, and that is especially valuable in a game of magnitude.

He's always a threat in the opposing penalty area, where the sight of him powering a header isn't uncommon.

But he must keep his cool. Though Madrid ended up winning April's Clasico 2-1, Ramos was sent off after picking up a second yellow card. If Barcelona's in the mood to hit Madrid on the break, the 30-year-old has to make sure he's not caught wrong-footed.