So, the first of four Clasicos in quick succession has ended in a draw. The match took place at the packed Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid, with the crowd going all out for Real. Flags fluttered, banners were held up, the team badge formed with paper. There was a minority of Barca supporters too, but they were outshouted by the Madridistas. Barcelona kicked off. They kept possession with their short-passing style most of the time, applying pressure on the Whites. Real seemed to find it hard to string many passes together, but created chances led by Cristiano Ronaldo nevertheless. The first scoring opportunity for Barca was created with an uncharacteristically late 18 minutes on the clock.
That was more or less how it went in the first half, Barca attacking, Real getting possession, entering the attacking half, taking a shot maybe, and Barca regaining the ball and starting over. The pressure was still on Real.
The hosts kicked off in the second half and seemed to be able to control the ball better. Raul Albiol tackled David Villa unnecessarily harshly in the box, leading to the referee sending him off and awarding Barca a penalty, which Lionel Messi promptly put past Iker Casillas. The latter kept well throughout the game, but when your own teammate and defender turns violent, one can't do much. Messi exulted, and for a while it looked like it was going to be a widely predicted Barcelona victory. But Real, who needed the three points badly, had other ideas.
They attacked frantically. Marcelo's was one of many penetrations into Barcelona's half, but when he was brought down by a defender and the referee pointed to the spot, a draw was on the cards. Cristiano Ronaldo netted the ball past Victor Valdes to make it 1-1, which was the way it stayed till the end eight minutes later. After the star player's equaliser, both sides pushed forward to get the full three points, but the score didn't change. The final whistle blew and the second La Liga El Clasico had ended in a draw.
Both goals, from arguably the two best players in the world, were from the spot, which also said something about the quality of defence and keeping. The pressure also made the game a little more ill-tempered than necessary, leading to a lot of players from both sides see yellow. But it was a good and memorable game.
Three more Clasicos coming up in just over two weeks. I can't wait!
That was more or less how it went in the first half, Barca attacking, Real getting possession, entering the attacking half, taking a shot maybe, and Barca regaining the ball and starting over. The pressure was still on Real.
The hosts kicked off in the second half and seemed to be able to control the ball better. Raul Albiol tackled David Villa unnecessarily harshly in the box, leading to the referee sending him off and awarding Barca a penalty, which Lionel Messi promptly put past Iker Casillas. The latter kept well throughout the game, but when your own teammate and defender turns violent, one can't do much. Messi exulted, and for a while it looked like it was going to be a widely predicted Barcelona victory. But Real, who needed the three points badly, had other ideas.
They attacked frantically. Marcelo's was one of many penetrations into Barcelona's half, but when he was brought down by a defender and the referee pointed to the spot, a draw was on the cards. Cristiano Ronaldo netted the ball past Victor Valdes to make it 1-1, which was the way it stayed till the end eight minutes later. After the star player's equaliser, both sides pushed forward to get the full three points, but the score didn't change. The final whistle blew and the second La Liga El Clasico had ended in a draw.
Both goals, from arguably the two best players in the world, were from the spot, which also said something about the quality of defence and keeping. The pressure also made the game a little more ill-tempered than necessary, leading to a lot of players from both sides see yellow. But it was a good and memorable game.
Three more Clasicos coming up in just over two weeks. I can't wait!
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