Barcelona went to the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu and beat LaLiga Santander leaders Real Madrid 4-0 in El Clasico on Sunday night.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Ronald Araujo scored a goal apiece in the first half, and then Ferran Torres and Aubameyang again added to Barcelona’s tally after the break.
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Real Madrid came into this Clasico without Karim Benzema but with a nine-point lead over second-placed Sevilla in the LaLiga Santander table, while Barcelona were 15 points behind Los Blancos and had not won against their arch-rivals in their last five attempts.
Yet, while it was Xavi Hernandez’s side who started the better, there was a controversial moment that would go on to have an impact on the rest of the match. Aubameyang’s loose touch saw Toni Kroos get to the ball first, which was followed by the Barcelona forward going in studs first on the German’s shin. No card was given, much to the dismay of Real Madrid fans.
Barcelona had a plethora of chances that followed, and eventually it was Aubameyang who gave the Catalan side the lead in the 29th minute. Ousmane Dembele got away from Nacho Fernandez, who was playing at left-back in place of the injured Ferland Mendy, before sending a cross into the area which Aubameyang headed past Thibaut Courtois.
Despite going behind, there was little to no response from Real Madrid as they struggled to cope with Barcelona’s tactics and general play. Xavi’s charges were having chance after chance, but on a rare counter-attack Vinicius Junior appealed for a penalty after trying to take the ball around Marc-Andre ter Stegen and falling to the ground, but he was already going down before he got close to the Barcelona goalkeeper.
Then, no more than two minutes after Vinicius’ appeal for a penalty, Barcelona doubled their lead through Ronald Araujo. The Uruguayan was given acres of space in the box from a corner and rose above David Alaba to head the ball into the back of the net. Barcelona had another chance to score before the half-time break, but Aubameyang was unable to get on the end of Jordi Alba’s headed pass.
Ancelotti made two changes at the break in the hope of turning things around, with Eduardo Camavinga and Mariano Diaz coming on for Dani Carvajal and Toni Kroos, but it was the same unorganised Real Madrid in the early part of the second half.
Ferran Torres had a golden opportunity to score a third goal inside the first minute of the second half, but he sent his shot wide of the post. But, one minute later, he didn’t make the same mistake. Alaba’s loose pass was intercepted by Frenkie de Jong, which led to the Dutchman finding Aubameyang and he then flicked it into the path of Ferran, who fired his effort into the top right corner.
Barcelona’s dream and Real Madrid’s nightmare was heightened four minutes later, as Aubameyang got his second goal and the Blaugrana’s fourth. Gerard Pique’s long free-kick towards Ferran was excellently brought down by the Spanish forward, who played a quick pass into the direction of Aubameyang. The former Arsenal man then kept his composure by chipping the ball over Courtois. The offside flag had gone up, but a VAR review showed that Ferran and Aubameyang were both onside when they received the ball, so the goal stood.
The remainder of the game saw a clueless-looking Real Madrid try to work their way back into the game, but Barcelona controlled proceedings and managed to see out the remaining 39 minutes with relative ease.
Barcelona are unlikely to go on and win this year’s LaLiga Santander title, with there still being a 12-point gap behind Real Madrid after this win, but Xavi has let Los Blancos know that the next few years will see a very different Barcelona. (Marca.com)
