Karim Benzema has declared that he does not fear Barcelona, but would prefer that Lionel Messi give El Clasico a miss.

"I'm not afraid of either Barcelona or the Camp Nou," Benzema told Marca.

"I would prefer that [Lionel] Messi doesn't play - he's very good."

The derby has been called a clash of different playing styles between Barca and Real, but the Frenchman has said that "little by little, the flair will come" for Los Merengues.

"I'm not thinking about losing, only going four points clear," he continued.

The young striker then took some time to talk about Thierry Henry's handball, and chose to defend his fellow compatriot.

"You can't forget everything that Henry has done for the French national team. The ball hit his hand and that's it - it could happen to anyone," he concluded.