Messi was not required: Neymar, Suarez put the class in El Clasico as Barcelona rout Real Madrid

In football, there’s nary a sight more beautiful than a player at the height of his powers. When his every touch of the ball, every turn and trick oozes confidence and you can see him stroll around the ground with considerable swagger. He easily stands out and he smiles a lot. It was Neymar who stood out Saturday night in the 171st El Clasico — the almost mythic encounter between Real Madrid and Barcelona. There is form and then there is form that Neymar is in right now. A clash that in the past few years has become synonymous with Messi vs Ronaldo, wasn’t about either one of them this time. The former, just back from injury, didn’t start the match, the latter did start the game, but you would be forgiven to think he did not play. [caption id=“attachment_2516728” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Luis Suarez and Neymar were unstoppable against Real Madrid. AFP[/caption] It was a humbling experience for Real Madrid in front of over 80,000 fans as Barcelona gave them a lesson in football. Luis Suarez scored a brace, taking his tally to 11 goals in 11 La Liga Games, but it was Neymar who turned up red hot for the match. The Brazilian scored Barcelona’s second and provided a magical backheel assist to Iniesta for the third. He now has nine goals and four assists in last six La Liga games. With his goal against Real Madrid, Neymar also reached his 250th career goal for club and country. Just a timely reminder that Neymar is still 23 years of age. Lionel Messi, who still remains as the top scorer of the El Clasico fixture with 21 goals, has been out of action for about two months, owing to a ligament injury in his left knee. But it seems Barcelona hasn’t missed him all this while. Neymar, the best player in the world right now, and Luis Suarez have stepped up massively to fill in the void left by Messi and they have now racked up a combined 19 goals in last nine games. Heading into the fixture, Real Madrid was undefeated in last 22 La Liga games at the Bernabeu, winning 19 of them and scoring 74 goals in the process. So their ineptitude on the field was inexplicable. Ronaldo was a sailor lost at sea, Benzema barely a shadow of himself. At times it was too easy for Barcelona, who kept the ball at will, passing it around Madrid players who seemed to have given up. Six hundred million viewers around the world were watching the much awaited and talked about game. Real Madrid were nothing more than viewers themselves on the night. By the end of a miserable first half, Real Madrid had a single shot at goal to Barcelona’s nine and only a single chance created against the visitor’s seven. Andres Iniesta, who too scored and assisted one on the night, turned back the clock by around four years and gave an exquisite performance. It was him who put Neymar through on goal from the left for the latter’s goal. Neymar returned the favour and set him up next with a backheel that gets better and better with multiple viewings. The moment of the fixture came in the 57th minute when Luis Enrique, with his side 3-0 up and looking very eager for more, subbed in Messi for Ivan Rakitic. Real Madrid were as white as their kit with fear as Messi stood on the sidelines, waiting to be thrown into the fray. While Messi looked hungry and quick as soon as he came on, Ronaldo was mostly seen moping. By the time Barcelona scored their fourth, Ronaldo’s face could tell the entire night’s story. The only Madrid player to emerge with any credit on the night was James Rodriguez. He played deep, and tried to feed Bale, Benzema and Ronaldo. But manager Rafael Benitez inexplicably subbed him off in the 55th minute and brought on Isco. The former Malaga man did bring some freshness to his side, but was shown a straight red in the 83rd minute after he fouled Neymar — a lethargic trip from behind to bring down the fleet-footed Brazilian, a perfect representation of Madrid’s night. In another bizarre substitution, Carvajal, a right back, was subbed on for Marcelo before the hour mark - another move that was met with jeers from the home fans, who had much to jeer on the night. Real Madrid’s record this season has been brilliant, but El Clasicos are must-win affairs. There are more things than just points at stake. Benitez, despite good results, has not been winning hearts at Madrid. His relationship with Ronaldo is also a strained one. These things, combined with a humiliating El Clasico defeat, are enough to get a manager fired at Madrid, as crazy as it sounds. Real now sit second on the La Liga table, six points behind Barcelona after 12 games, and it’s very difficult to chase down even a small gap in La Liga. Madrid fans’ angry whistles and boos echoed at the Bernabeu after the humiliation. Benitez said in the press conference after the match that he was ‘hurting’ following the loss. But, with him at the helm of a club where demands run high and patience runs low, Benitez would hope the El Clasico result would not hurt his job.