Madrid had complained of play-acting by Barca's players and alleged that Blaugrana midfielder Sergio Busquets had directed a racist remark at Brazilian full-back Marcelo during last Wednesday's ugly encounter, but European football's governing body threw out their complaint earlier today.

"Tomorrow's match has been overshadowed by UEFA's resolution - it's on another plane now," said Karanka.

"We have been punished but there are [Barca] players who didn't respect the principles of fair play or who made racist insults, covering their mouths, who will be on the pitch tomorrow."

Karanka's fiery remarks are sure to whip up yet more controversy ahead of the match, which will see Madrid missing both Pepe and Sergio Ramos through suspension.

Madrid coach Jose Mourinho, who chose to sit out tonight's pre-match press conference, will also be watching from the stands at the Nou Camp after he was dismissed during his side's 2-0 reverse in the first leg last week.

Mourinho courted controversy after last week's match by claiming Barcelona receive favours from UEFA, in addition to questioning the ethics of the club's relationship with Unicef and branding Barca's 2009 Champions League win "scandalous".

The comments prompted Barca to file a complaint with UEFA, but that too was dismissed by the governing body today.

Mourinho will nevertheless watch tomorrow's match from the stands, but Karanka insists the mercurial coach will still be in a position to influence proceedings.

"He will be in the stands, but he will be able to get his message across," Karanka said.

"If we could win and dedicate the victory to him it would be something important.

"Real Madrid have 109 years of proud history and we will fight to the end."

The first of the current sequence of Clasico matches ended in a 1-1 draw at the Bernabeu, before a 1-0 win for Madrid in the final of the Copa del Rey and the loss in last week's semi-final first leg.

Karanka was quick to point out, however, that all three goals his side have conceded in those matches have come when they have been playing a man down.

"Playing 11 against 11, Barcelona haven't scored against us in these last few Clasico matches," he said.

"So let's hope we have the chance to play 11 against 11 for the whole game tomorrow."

Karanka was at Madrid for all three of their European Cup successes around the turn of the millennium, but none of the current playing squad - apart from Iker Casillas - have tasted continental success at the club.

And despite trailing by two goals, French striker Karim Benzema has not given up hope of a remarkable comeback tomorrow night.

"It's difficult, but we can beat Barca and we'll give all our strength in those 90 minutes to make it to the final," he said.

Benzema also stood up for coach Mourinho and team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo following criticism of the Portuguese duo in the media this week.

"Mourinho is a great coach and he has shown that by winning the Copa del Rey and taking us to the Champions League semi-final in his first season," he said.

"Ronaldo is a great player. After the loss against Barca he was angry, but for this great game we need him at his best - for me he is better than Messi."

But Benzema believes a solid foundation is needed in order to allow the club's attacking players to flourish tomorrow.

"We will attack but first we have to defend well," he said. "If we do that, we will score lots of goals."