Barcelona: Lionel Messi weaved his magic to keep 10-man Barcelona’s unbeaten season alive as a 2-2 draw at the Camp Nou Sunday left Real Madrid sweating over an injury to Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ronaldo was forced off at half time after appearing to hurt his ankle and Real will be hoping their star striker can now recover in time for the Champions League final against Liverpool May 26.
The challenge from Gerard Pique had come as Ronaldo cancelled out Luis Suarez’s opener before Sergi Roberto was sent off on the stroke of half time for an altercation with Real defender Marcelo.
Barca, however, took the lead in the second half as Messi scored a brilliant individual goal only for Gareth Bale, who could earlier have been sent off, to have the last word in a thrilling Clasico, his emphatic strike earning Real a well-deserved draw.
Ronaldo’s injury, however, coupled with Barcelona avoiding defeat, despite playing a man down for the whole of the second half, will mean the Catalans depart the happier side.
Ernesto Valverde’s men, already crowned champions, are now three matches away from becoming the first team ever to finish a 38-game La Liga season unbeaten.
Andres Iniesta overcame, or perhaps ignored, a niggling calf problem to play his 38th and final Clasico. Iniesta went off to a standing ovation in the second half.
Barca exploded out of the blocks and they were ahead within 10 minutes. Suarez swept the ball out to the right where Sergi drove forward, ignored Messi’s run to the near post, and returned the cross deep to Suarez who finished into the bottom corner with a wonderful volley.
The lead, however, lasted four minutes. Just as Suarez initiated his goal, so did Ronaldo, a neat backheel freeing Toni Kroos, who found Karim Benzema at the back post. The Frenchman was cool enough to head back into the six-yard box, where Ronaldo bundled home.
Eight minutes into the second period, Suarez’s blatant kick on Raphael Varane went unpunished and from there it was all about Messi. He skipped away first from Ramos, and then Casemiro, before firing into the bottom corner.
Iniesta went off just before the hour and Messi could have put Barca out of sight soon after. He sped away from Varane but his shot was parried away by Keylor Navas.
Real’s goal in the 72nd minute came out of the blue as Bale raced onto Asensio’s pass and whipped the ball first-time into the top corner.
Real should have had a late penalty when Alba cleared out Marcelo but referee Alejandro Jose Hernandez Hernandez somehow decided the challenge was clean. It was the final controversy of a surprisingly heated derby.
agence france-presse