Navas says El Clásico against Barcelona will be a "close game"

This has been a roller-coaster season for Keylor Navas. The goalkeeper was minutes away from joining Manchester United last summer when Real Madrid's deal for David De Gea failed at the deadline. For Real, that move meant that the club officially thought Navas wasn't as good as De Gea, so it could have been difficult for the Costa Rican to keep his confidence and trust in this club.

However, Navas has responded and he's been arguably one of Madrid's best players this season. Los Blancos have not been performing well and sometimes Navas has been the reason why they've won the three points. Today, he discussed Saturday's Clásico against Barcelona in press conference.

"I think it will be a close game, both teams will be out to win it. We don't want to do anything silly, we'll play with character. We have to make good decisions, know when to attack and when to defend, and of course, we want to score goals. You can't keep the same rhythm for the full 90 minutes," said Navas.

It will be almost impossible for Madrid to overcome Barça's big lead in the table, but that is not distracting the team. "We all know that La Liga is going to be difficult but we must be aware that the values of this club come first and we have to give our all until the final whistle. We can't let our heads drop, we must keep the fighting spirit that characterizes this club. We will give everything to win this game," he explained.

Navas will be facing Barcelona's menacing attacking trio of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suárez. The last time Real played against those three players the match ended in a shocking 0-4. "They are brilliant footballers. I always respect my rivals. I can't say that one is more dangerous than another. They are great players but we have talent and we have to try and do things better than them," said Navas.

Knowing that it will be very hard to keep a clean sheet against Barcelona at the Camp Nou, Real Madrid must be productive on offense. James could be a crucial player for that to happen but the Colombian isn't playing as well as initially expected. Either way, James has Navas' trust. "We shouldn't doubt James' quality and commitment. He has everyone's support. We rely on him because he's important and I know he'll really help us in this final stretch of the season," explained the keeper.

Rumors indicate that Navas could be on his way out to Manchester next summer as Real will try to work on a deal for De Gea again. One thing is for certain: De Gea will not have an easy task replacing Navas if that happens.