Full-time: Real Madrid 0-4 Barcelona
... it’s all over. The home fans are understandably upset, they have just seen their side comprehensively dismantled by their fiercest rivals. They wave their white hankies and whistle loudly – the club try their best to drown this out by turning the full-time music up to 11. It was not looking good for Rafa before the match and it is looking pretty awful right about now. Madrid were poor but Barça, in almost every position, were sensational. It’s a bit churlish to just pick out one player for a special mention but Iniesta was great – and deserved his standing ovation from the home fans – as was Bravo and Suárez. The win sends the Catalan club six points clear at the top of the league and it’s hard to see anyone stopping them from reclaiming their title.
Here’s Sid Lowe’s match report.
That’s all from me tonight. Thanks for all your emails and Tweets and enjoy the rest of your weekend. Bye!
Iniesta: "This feels great. I honestly think we played a complete game." #fcblive
— barcastuff (@barcastuff) November 21, 2015
Updated
90 +1 mins Busquets hauls down Benzema and is awarded a yellow card but that doesn’t matter ...
Updated
90 mins We are into the two minutes of time added on. Before that was flagged up by the assistant referee, a decent header from Ronaldo forced another smart save from Bravo. The Barça keeper has been very, very good today.
Updated
89 mins Benzema finally does something for his side, with his shot being deflected wide for a corner. That comes to nothing and Barça attack down the left via a scuttling run from Neymar. He cuts the ball across the box and Munir, in absolute acres inside the box, somehow manages to send his left-footed shot wide. Piqué – of all players – was behind him and was furious that Munir did not let it run for him.
87 mins Maybe not, eh?
@ianmccourt Barcelona don't need Deulofeu then?
— Gary Naylor (@garynaylor999) November 21, 2015
RED CARD for Isco!
85 mins And boy did he deserve it! Neymar was miles past Isco when, in frustration, the Real Madrid man lashed out at Neymar’s left knee. It was a stupid challenge and he did not bother putting up any arguments before walking towards the tunnel.
84 mins Carvajal is the latest player to have a yellow card beside his name after a rather industrious challenge on Neymar. The foul leaves Barça with a free-kick wide on the right, near the corner of the box. They could opt to put more pressure on the Real defence but instead they opt to keep possession.
82 mins You know things are not going well when there are ...
Whistles for Cristiano Ronaldo from the Bernabeu crowd.
— SPORT English (@Sport_EN) November 21, 2015
80 mins “Iniesta is the conductor” says Alan. Bow. “The rest are merely the orchestra. He is beautiful to watch.”
78 mins Iniesta is replaced by Munir. He, Iniesta that is, gets applauded by the home fans. He deserves it. He has been the best player out there today.
This is great, really great. Messi started it by picking the ball up in the Madrid half. He cut inside and somehow, through a fog of white shirts, managed to pick out a precise pass to Alba on the edge of the box. He flicked it on to Suárez around the corner, who strode into the box, waited for Keylor to come out before clipping the ball over the keeper.
Updated
GOAL!!! Real Madrid 0-4 Barcelona (Suárez, 74 mins)
Speaking of Suárez ...
Updated
72 mins “Watching Liverpool finally playing exciting football again,” says Matt Dony, “finally able to start forgetting Suarez. Then I change the channel and see him battering Madrid. Like bumping in to an ex before you’re truly over them.”
70 mins Kroos (I think) puts Ronaldo through on goal once again. This could be it ... were it not for him being called back for offside.
68 mins Barcelona have a free-kick about 30 yards out. Messi eyes it up despite the distance. The white wall does its job and Real counter with speed. Ronaldo is played in on goal by a lovely ball from the outside of Bale’s boot. He is one-on-one with Bravo and he looks to clip it over the keeper but Bravo is equal to his effort and he pulls off a great save to keep his sheet clean.
Updated
66 mins “More like El Mismatchio,” honks Simon McMahon. More action down the Madrid goal end. A delicate pass from Messi finds Suárez in the box but the forward cannot control it properly. The ball pops out to Neymar and he sets up Messi for a shot. Varane gets his body in the way and Barça do nothing with the corner.
64 mins Bale is screaming at the referee for a penalty and he has a point. The Welshman was trying to bend the ball around the body of Piqué but the defender’s arm (intentionally) got in the way.
62 mins Madrid get a series of corners. Madrid do nothing with their series of corners, barring a soft header on goal from Ronaldo. Ho hum. Down the other end, Carvajal gives away a free near the corner of the box on the left-hand side. Messi and Neymar stand over it. Oddly, instead of swinging it into the box or having a pop on goal, they do nothing but play the ball back.
60 mins “When you said ‘the greatest player you’ll ever lay your eyes on’ did you mean Iniesta or Neymar?” asks James Galloway. “They’re both pretty handy. Though I guess you didn’t mean Rakitic - he’s only one of the best players in Europe.” I meant Iniesta.
Updated
57 mins In all the excitement after the goal, Barcelona should’ve been awarded a penalty and Madrid should be down to 10 men. Suárez broke into the box and Ramos brought him down with a fairly cynical back-leg hack. Perhaps Suárez’s earlier theatrics counted against him? Meanwhile, Marcelo goes and Carvajal comes on.
56 mins Just when things cannot get any worse for Madrid ... on comes Messi for Rakitic.
55 mins James goes and Isco comes on.
This is sensational from a one of the greatest players you will ever lay eyes upon. Rakitic picked up the ball midway between the half-way line and Madrid net. He fed Iniesta and, in turn, he played the ball into Neymar. The Brazilian sent the ball back to him via the most delicious back-hell and Iniesta fired it into the top corner of the net. That was special.
Updated
GOAL!!! Real Madrid 0-3 Barcelona (Iniesta, 52 mins)
Game. Over.
51 mins Ramos gets half-way towards receiving his 1000th red card of his career by chopping down Sergi Roberto outside the box. The resulting free is just outside the box. Neymar and Mathieu (like he is going to take it!) stand over it. Neymar strikes and it is headed for the top corner until Keylor tips it over. The following corner comes to nothing.
49 mins Just minutes after that, James got the ball outside the box and struck a fierce, low effort that forced Bravo to dive low to his right and pull off a very decent save. After that, Bale tried one from long distance. Twas not a good effort.
47 mins Barcelona get the second half going by settling into their passing rhythm. Madrid win the ball back in their own half. Marcelo punts it forward seeking to find the run of Bale. That pass is snuffed out and Madrid are forced back but come forward once again. It’s Marcelo once more. He skips past Alves into space and in on goal. HIs angle to shoot is tight and there are tons of his team-mates in the box but Marcelo decides to try his luck anyway. Nothing comes of it.
45 mins Peeeeeeeeeep! We are back with the second 45 minutes and possibly the last 45 minutes that Rafael Benítez will, eh, enjoy as manager of Real Madrid. He has decided to react to his team being completely outplayed by doing, eh, nothing and leaving his side as it is. Barça, unsurprisingly, don’t bother changing anything either.
This is interesting:
Loud chants of "Florentino, resign" by Real Madrid fans
— Rik Sharma (@riksharma_) November 21, 2015
The fans are not happy with what they have seen:
Reaction from Madrid's fans. Wow. White hankies.
— Sid Lowe (@sidlowe) November 21, 2015
Half-time: Real Madrid 0-2 Barcelona
Well, well. What a 45 minutes that was! And it should’ve ended 3-0. Neymar and Suárez one-twoed on the edge of the box. Neymar edged towards the end line and cut the ball back for Suárez. He hit one goalwards and only the head of Marcelo stopped it from going in. Rakitic followed it up but his effort was deflected wide and there was no time for the corner.
Updated
45 mins There will be two more minutes before the half-time oranges are broken out.
44 mins “Ronaldo did what any player would do at the highest level of football,” reckons Ravi Raman. “Yes it was deliberate but Dani Alves did step in front of him.” So he should’ve been sent off then, right? If it was deliberate. Meanwhile, here is a Bale update for you:
Bale doing the old Ronaldo trick of pressing frantically and waving at his team mates to follow him up the pitch. Barca pass around him.
— Dermot Corrigan (@dermotmcorrigan) November 21, 2015
Updated
43 mins This is not looking goof for Madrid or their manager’s chances of keeping his job.
Moments after that Benzema miss, Barça swept up the field and won the ball thanks to Modric who coughed up possession. Iniesta got the ball at his feet just outside the box. With a simple through pass, he cut the Madrid defence – who were trying (and failing) to play offside – and Neymar latched onto the ball. He could’ve cut it across for Suárez but instead he put it under Keylor and into the net.
Updated
GOAL!!! Real Madrid 0-2 Barcelona (Neymar, 40 mins)
Who needs Messi?
Updated
38 mins Speaking of not being at the races. Real work a chance down the right. The ball is sent to the far post and the direction of Benzema. A fit and match-ready Benzema would fire it home and wheel off in celebration. This version, however, completely scuffs the effort.
36 mins Madrid attack down the left via Marcelo. But there is no support for him from any of his team-mates and not one of them looks to make a run behind the Barça defence so he is left isolated and is forced to shift the ball backwards. He looks frustrated and well he should be. Real are not at the races today.
34 mins A lot of people seem to be suggesting that Ronaldo’s elbow to Alves’ head was deliberate and that he should have been sent off. Yet to see a replay but it certainly didn’t seem to be the case on the initial viewing.
32 mins Is this about All Saints? If so, sad news.
@ianmccourt just checked our friend wikipedia. apparently they broke up for good in 2009.
— ぜにまる・ザ・ジェントルマン・で・ごんす (@zenimaru_UK) November 21, 2015
30 mins Corner to Barcelona. Neymar put it over. Keylor caught it and flung it. Real counter but that is stopped in its tracks by Alves and Ronaldo coming together – Alves basically just stood in front of Ronaldo, stopped him from collecting a one-two and got a Ronaldo elbow in his head for his efforts as well as a yellow card for his troubles.
28 mins The last few minutes have seen Real up their attacking game. Under extreme pressure, Barca tried to play the ball out from the back. Kroos shut down Busquets and the ball bobbled to Modric. He looked up and found James. His snap shot forced Bravo into a smart save.
Updated
26 mins “I see that you can’t make up your mind about Ramos,” says J.R. in Illinois. “Let me help you out. He’s a butcher. A dirty one.” There is some bad news for Barcelona. Mascherano has done his groin. He is replaced by Mathieu.
Updated
24 mins Deep in his own half, Ramos squares a pass right to Neymar, leaving his side deep in the do-do. Neymar makes away with the ball but outside the box, he is taken to the turf by James. He gets a yellow card and Barça get a free. Neymar takes it. It’s low and hard and Navas gets down well to save it.
22 mins Danilo challenges Suárez for the ball. It’s a perfectly good challenge but Suárez falls to the ground. He gets a free-kick but he really shouldn’t have – that’s twice he has done that.
20 mins Whatever happened to the All Saints? Are they still going?
18 mins We are a decent bit into the game and I’m sure that Bale has just had his first touch. Speaking of the Welshman, he has just swung one into the box. Ronaldo and Alves challenged for it. Both engaged in some WWF-style histrionics but Ronaldo wanted a penalty for it. Never ever, says the referee channelling that All Saints hit from many a year ago.
16 mins Mascherano is down and looks to have an injured groin after a challenge from James. He gets a touch from the magic sponge and gets back up. He is A-OK, folks.
14 mins Just saw a replay of the goal, looked like Ramos was caught out of position. Can never make up my mind about Ramos – sometimes awesome, more often dreadful. Meanwhile, a wonderful cross-field pass from the ever amazing Iniesta finds Roberto in the box. He takes it down and instead of shooting, he opts to find the in-coming run of Rakitic. He blazes it miles over the bar.
Updated
It’s Suárez’s name on the scoresheet but this is all about Sergi Roberto. He picked the ball up in the middle of the pitch, he drove forward with a powerful surging run (ghosting past Modric and a few other Madrid midfielders) before splitting the Madrid defence with a delicate pass that found the intelligent run of the Uruguayan forward. With Keylor running out, Suárez used the outside of his boot to curl the ball into the far corner of the net. First blood to Barça.
Updated
GOAL!!! Real Madrid 0-1 Barcelona (Suárez, 10 mins)
Well, well ...
9 mins Well Neymar didn’t go close but Ronaldo almost did. He combined with Benzema - who has looked off the pace so far – and strode into the box. From a tight angle he forced Bravo into a decent save before the ball was swept out of the Barça box.
7 mins There has been a goal inside the opening seven minutes in the last few Clásico fixtures but not this one. Modern football is rubbish, inn’it? Neymar could’ve kept the record going when Alba and Suárez combined (the latter via a delicate flick) to set up the Brazilian but his effort landed in row Z rather than the back of the net.
5 mins Neymar is released down the left into plenty of space. This is his first chance to attack. He cuts inside and drifts towards the box. He looks up and chips one in but it is a loose effort and Keylor comes and takes it cleanly.
3 mins “Evening Ian,” cheer Simon McMahon. “Not from El Clasico, but Kevin Gallagher’s goal against Barcelona in the first leg of the UEFA Cup QF in 1987 at Tannadice was pretty good. As was John Clark’s in the return leg. It’s hard to choose a favourite when you’ve played the Catalan giants four times and beaten them four times.” Back to the game. Ronaldo wins a corner for his side. It is swung over but Ramos cannot reach it. Piqué can and he clears it.
1 min The atmosphere is sensational. Barca start the opening moments by passing and passing. Madrid push high and hard and Bravo is forced to punt it long. Suárez and Ramos challenge for it. The defender wins the ball well enough but Suárez falls to the ground clutching his shoulder. He is making too much of it and the home fans let him know what they think of it.
Updated
Peeeeeeeeeep! Off we go then. Real Madrid are in their traditional meringue white, while Barça are in their traditional red and blue number. The away side are the ones who get us going and they will start off playing right to left. Excited? You should be.
The players are out on the pitch. The noise level is high. Thierry Henry informs us that he always preferred this match when playing away from home. “It’s special moment,” he insights. The managers shake hands with the referee and the two teams line up and stare forward, like a father disapproving of his daughter’s date to the prom but too angry to say anything. Behind them, a big French flag is unfurled and the minute silence commences.
It seems they are not a fan of Messi over in Madrid. Who would’ve thought that, eh?
Jeers boos and whistles for Messi far far bigger than for @3gerardpique Luis Enrique also greeted with more abuse.
— Graham Hunter (@BumperGraham) November 21, 2015
Updated
The security-heavy scene outside the Santiago Bernabéu.
“While we are waiting,” emails Ravi Raman, “let’s enjoy the skill in this goal.”
Aye, ‘tis a nice one all right. Any suggestions you may have for the best goal that el Clásico has had the pleasure of witnessing can be sent to the above address.
Fancy an animated guide to el Clásico? Of course you do!
Updated
As with today’s Premier League games, there will be a minute’s silence before the game and the French national anthem will be played. In a further mark of respect, the Paseo de la Castellana end of the Santiago Bernabéu will not fly their usual Clásico mural and instead fly the flag of France. Yves Saint-Geours, France’s ambassador to Spain, has been invited as a guest-of-honour in the presidential box. In addition to Yves, there will also be 1,000 members of the national police force, 1,400 agents from a private security company, as well as the local Madrid fire brigade, ambulance and police crews.
Updated
Team news
Finally. The good news for Barcelona/bad news for Real Madrid is that Rakitic has been deemed fit enough to start. The good news for Real Madrid/bad news for Barcelona is that Benzema has also been deemed fit enough to start. So the BBC are reunited (and thus a preferred role out wide for Ronaldo) but it will be interesting to see how the Frenchman gets on in such a game as this given that he is coming back from injury and has had the odd distraction or two in his private life. James also starts for Madrid in what is a very attacking lineup for a manager who would not be known for picking attacking lineups. The teams in full then are as follows:
Real Madrid: Keylor; Danilo, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; James, Kroos, Modric; Bale, Benzema, Ronaldo. Subs: Kiko Casilla, Pepe, Casemiro, Carvajal, Kovacic, Jesé, Isco.
Barcelona: Bravo; Alves, Piqué, Mascherano, Alba; Rakitic, Busquets, Iniesta; Roberto, Suárez, Neymar. Subs: Ter Stegen, Vermaelen, Mathieu, Adriano, Munir, Messi, Sandro.
Referee: Fernández Borbalán
Updated
When we said a jiffy ... we thought Real Madrid would be a bit swifter in giving up the team goods. There are rumours that Jese and Isco might start and James and Benzema are on the bench but there has been no confirmation from the club about that just yet. While you wait for that team news, here is Sid Lowe’s preview to the game to keep you busy. Enjoy.
They followed Leo Messi every step of the way, willing him to take his next step, then his next, then his next, from the Camp Nou to the Cruz Blau clinic and on towards the Santiago Bernabéu, his target and theirs. The countdown began the moment he tore the medial ligament in his left knee against Las Palmas and it has quickened as the clásico comes closer, but the tone has changed. It is different now: there is expectation not desperation, excitement instead of fear – and not just because Messi should now make it to Saturday evening’s match at Real Madrid.
A week ago, Messi ran; on Sunday, he shot; and on Tuesday he completed a training match. He scored, too, beating Marc-André ter Stegen in an 80-minute game held at Sant Joan Despí. Afterwards his sponsors revealed the boots he will wear at the Bernabéu. That’s “will”, not “might”. And the following morning Luis Suárez said he did not know if Messi would play from the start or as a substitute, which is one way of saying Messi will play. And if he doesn’t? If he doesn’t, he doesn’t. Suárez will and so will Neymar.
A recurring question has done the rounds recently: would you risk Messi in theclásico? Not long ago, the answer would have been: what kind of question is that? The fact it is even being asked is revealing. “You always miss Messi,” Andrés Iniesta said and that too was telling, a response to suggestions Barcelona have not. After all, however much everyone keeps saying Messi is irreplaceable, Suárez and Neymar have done some job of replacing him. If they have to extend that to one more game, even this game, so be it.
Some breaking team news ...
... Messi starts on the bench. The full teams will be with you in a jiffy.
Good afternoon
The Camp Nou crowd reacted to the news by reaching a deafening silence. Luis Enrique, with his arms folded and looking as angry as old man trying to send back soup at a deli, was just as quiet. A day or two later the front page of El Mundo Deportivo managed to cough up one word – “Gulp!”. They were all worried, of course, Leo Messi is not the type to go down and stay down but down he was and in what looked like a lot of pain. It all stemmed from a long ball over the top. Messi controlled it with his usual precision and skipped towards the goal. He drew back his left foot and in stepped Pedro Bigas to block. Messi tried to hobble on but Munir El Haddadi was needed. “Messi has a torn lateral collateral ligament in his left knee,” cried a Barcelona statement. “He’ll be out for approximately seven to eight weeks.” That announcement must have had households across Catalonia chewing on their cuticles like a 50s teenager on their gum. Seven to eight weeks? Isn’t el Clásico in seven to eight weeks? Will Messi be fit? Gulp!
That was the $64,000 question. Fans would know that since Messi’s arrival on the scene he has missed just two Clásicos – both of which have seen Barcelona miss out on points – and would surely have spent a certain portion of those 56 days digging with their knees, offering up all sorts for his timely return from knee knack. After all, the revelation that you want your best player playing in the biggest game is up there with the ones about water being wet and the sun being hot. However, those 56 days have provided an interesting take on the raree-show at the Camp Nou. In Messi’s absence, Neymar and Luis Suárez have shown that they are far from the plain-faced bridesmaids who are smiling hard to desperately mask their envy, they are resplendent brides, the type that make Grace Kelly look like the Cookie Monster. As Sid Lowe pointed out in his preview piece: “Between them, Suárez and Neymar have scored every one of the club’s 16 league goals in Messi’s absence, eight each. They have 20 of 23 in all competitions, 10 each.” Pretty amazing, eh?
Messi has been training with the team for a decent chunk of the week but with Suárez and Neymar in such form, would you risk him? (Especially since eh has not been given the medical thumbs up by club doctors.) Or would you see how the game is panning out, then bring him on when/if he is needed? Given the possible repercussions, that’s a heck of an important decision for Enrique to make this early in the season and he was not giving much away when quizzed about it in his pre-match press briefing. “I prefer him to play of course [but] the great news is that he is fit again ... When will I make the decision about Messi starting or not? I’ll talk today with him, tomorrow and it’ll be decided an hour before the game.” That’s not the only injury that the Barcelona manager must consider. Unfortunately, it looks like we are going to be deprived of the joy of watching Ivan Rakitic.
Over in Madrid, where the game is taking place, there are no such injury worries. Cristiano Ronaldo is ready to go, Karim Benzema is ready to go, Gareth Bale is ready to go and – do not overlook the importance of this one despite his tendencies towards red-card rage – Sergio Ramos will be pricked with a pain-killing injection and also ready to go. So no injury worries but there are plenty of other worries for Real Madrid’s Clásico managerial virgin, Rafael Benítez. Apparently, the former Liverpool manager is under pressure and he is danger of being told that to take an extended break at Hotel du Juan. Yeah, seriously. His side have the best attack in the league, the second best defence in the league, are top of their Champions League group and are only three points behind Barça in the league with just 11 games gone. And he is under pressure. Pffffff.
Benítez must just sit there in his office What’s Apping his wife with loads of those crying face emojis and repeating the acronym FML out loud. What makes this situation even more farcical is that he has done this with a squad that has been struggling with injuries all season. Also ask yourself this – how many times has Benítez sent out his strongest side? Once? Maybe twice? And yet look where Real Madrid are. Honestly, what more do you want Madrid? And while we are asking questions – why hasn’t anyone been on to Florentino Pérez about why he hasn’t assembled a more balanced squad? Why wasn’t Benítez given another No9 in the summer? Of course, you can’t sack an entire squad of players and it’s always easiest to blame the manager and send him packing but it really is ridiculous that he is under pressure.
Speaking of things that are ridiculous, that Ronaldo movie, eh? Pffffff. It’s almost as bad as his form of late. OK, you’re right, he is being played slightly out of position a bit this season and defenders perhaps find it easier to play against him when he is in a more fixed position but it’s not like he has been moved to centre-back, is it? He is still up front, he is still getting chances to score but he is not doing in the big games for them, is he? He didn’t score in either of the games against PSG; he didn’t score against Atlético Madrid; and he didn’t score against Sevilla – in fact eight of his 13 goals this season came in two matches back in September and another three have come in his last seven games. For a player of his standards, that’s not good enough, is it?
Maybe this evening will bring out the best in him. “He has the capacity to score a lot of goals,” said Benítez, “he has my absolute confidence that he will score a lot of goals and he is a guarantee and he will do that. However he does it I don’t care. The important thing is that he feels comfortable, that he gets forward and scores.” The Ronaldo story line is an intriguing one as is the Messi on and all of this combined means that we are in for quite an evening of football. So turn off the phone, short-circuit the door bell and crack open the tins you have been saving for just this type of occasion. El clásico is on its way. Huzzah!
Kick-off: 5.15pm
Updated
