La Liga: 10-man Barcelona protect unbeaten record against Real Madrid in fast and furious El Clasico

If people thought both teams would go easy because there was nothing to play for, a particularly aggressive five-minute period at the end of the first-half would have assuaged any doubts anyone had. It all started when Sergio Ramos and Luis Suarez butted heads after the striker went down alleging the use of an elbow from the defender. [caption id=“attachment_4458805” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Barcelona’s Gerard Pique (R) and Samuel Umtiti vie with Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema (L). AFP[/caption] After the pair were separated and shown a yellow card each, Lionel Messi took it upon himself to send Real Madrid a message, going in fiercely to press Ramos, fouling him in the process and getting a booking for himself. No, the message sending did not stop just there. Soon after, Samuel Umtiti shielded the ball from Gareth Bale and the Welshman decided to go studs first on the back of the Frenchman’s leg. This entire sequence culminated in Sergi Roberto getting sent off after he hit out at Marcelo, more a slap than a punch, as the Brazilian ran into him. That was a furious end to a half in which there was some great quality football from both teams, two good goals and multiple opportunities for each team to score more. Suarez had given the hosts the lead, his smart pass allowing Roberto to get behind the defence and the Spaniard’s cross was emphatically finished by the Uruguayan. Soon after, Real found their way back into the match as Cristiano Ronaldo’s smart pass to Toni Kroos saw the German send in an inviting cross. Karim Benzema then headed the ball across goal and Ronaldo was there to finish the move, nipping ahead of Gerard Pique to score. After a slow start, the away side dominated play for the next few minutes, creating multiple chances for Ronaldo, who could have had a hat-trick in the first half itself. The first 45 minutes showed that both teams wanted the win and were ready to go full throttle to get the same. Neither team was willing to give an inch and the stakes were just as high as pride and honour is just as important as winning trophies for both clubs. Despite the man advantage, it was the Catalan giants who started the second half on the front foot, bringing on Nelsen Semedo for an ineffective Philippe Coutinho at half-time. Zinedine Zidane decided he did not want to risk Ronaldo, removing the Portuguese after he hurt his ankle in the first half. Barcelona took the lead again thanks to Messi’s genius as he picked up the ball just inside the box, dribbled to get some shooting room around both Ramos and Raphael Varane, before curling a lovely shot past the outstretched hand of Keylor Navas, who had a brilliant game in goal for Los Blancos. Yet again, Messi’s ability to coast till he had to be decisive stood out as he pounced on the game and utilised spaces that opened up for him on the field, as a consequence of his team going down to 10 men. Being a man down only liberated the home side as they piled on forward with glee, but found Navas a barrier tough to breach after the second goal. Just as Semedo did well for the Blaugrana on a night when they needed extra from all their players to keep their unbeaten record this season alive, Bale provided the exclamation point, scoring a beautiful goal that stunned the crowd with its suddenness as much as it did with the actual shot. His performance on the night was patchy but the goal might be the sign that if he gives it his all, he has a future at Real. Both Ernesto Valverde and Zinedine Zidane made the right changes, choosing to focus on what was important for both teams. If the former’s substitutes and tactical tweaks were aimed at helping his team continue attacking while being able to defend with numbers, his opposite number’s main focus was avoiding serious injury to any of his players, while pegging Barcelona back at the same time. To some extent, both coaches were successful and marshalled their resources well to ensure an entertaining and competitive encounter. As he has shown time and again this season, Ivan Rakitic was magnificent in a central midfield role as part of a two-man pivot with Sergio Busquets, foiling Real’s attacks, circulating possession well and starting attacks. He was especially key after his side had Roberto sent off, as he exhibited his endurance and ability to take on responsibility, taking on multiple different roles. A match that had everything – quality goals, great play, physical battles and teams not willing to back down, also had something that usually tarnishes the reputation of these fixtures and takes the sheen off. Yes, refereeing errors were aplenty in this game, as Alejandro Hernandez Hernandez should have mostly sent Bale off for his bad tackles on multiple occasions throughout the game. In the build-up to Barcelona’s second goal, Suarez blatantly brought Raphael Varane down, but the referee waved play on. And later in the second half, Real Madrid should have had a penalty but their appeals were ignored despite Jordi Alba clearly fouling Marcelo in the box. The game also marked an emotional occasion for departing Barcelona captain Andres Iniesta, as he made his last appearance in a Clasico. The midfield maestro did very well in the time he spent on the pitch, showing flashes of his ability to change direction and glide past opponents, while his passing was neat and tidy, as always. The Camp Nou erupted in applause and acknowledged the contributions of a living legend when he was substituted, reminding everyone that there would only be one Don Andres. A game that was shrouded by the pasillo controversy, as Zidane said Real would not give Barca a guard of honour, ended with both teams having shown that there is very little that separates them on the pitch. Despite their different styles of play and approach to the game, the two teams are led by winners and are full of players who hate losing to each other, thus making it a spectacle to behold whenever they go head-to-head. Season after season, the El Clasico is always a game that captures the imagination of fans as they see the world’s best teams exchange punches like two heavyweight boxers, not willing to give an inch.