Jubilation at Oshodi Under Bridge as sensational ‘Area Boy’ defeats Canadian High Commissioner in chess game
Other SportsEl Clásico: Barcelona Thrash Real Madrid, Score 4 Goals in a Brilliant Display of Attacking Football
- Barcelona put on a dominant display to beat Real Madrid in La Liga to claim bragging rights in the El Clásico
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Ferran Torres and Ronald Araújo all scored as Barcelona beat their fierce rivals
- Real Madrid are still 12 points ahead of Barcelona and are favourites to win the La Liga title this season
Barcelona thrashed Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu, beating their hosts 4-0 in La Liga.
Two goals from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang together with goals from Ferran Torres and Ronald Araújo gave The Blaugrana a dominant win over their fierce rivals.
Barcelona started much the stronger side, catching out Real Madrid. Torres looked particularly lively in the opening few minutes. Real Madrid overcame their shock and had their first attempt at the five-minute mark. Federico Valverde found Rodygro on the edge of the box but he sent his shot wide.
Real then almost opened the scoring as Valverde forced Marc-André ter Stegen into a diving save. Barcelona fought back immediately and Aubameyang had a shot saved by Thibaut Courtois. The Gabonese striker should have done better but hit his shot straight at the keeper.
Barcelona continued to dominate the game and Torres then put a shot just wide. The Blaugrana were finally rewarded for the pressure as Aubameyang scored in the 29th. Aubameyang got his head onto a pinpoint cross from Ousmane Dembélé to give his side the lead.
Going behind seemed to have raised the tension and Vinícius Júnior got riled up when he had a go at ter Stegen. The striker went down in the box and took offence to something the keeper said to him. Piques had to pull him away and calm him down. Replays show that Vinícius Jr was trying to win a penalty as he went down before any contact was made.
Less than ten minutes later, Barcelona went two goals up as Araújo scored from a corner. Once again Dembélé terrorised the Madrid defence which eventually resulted in his side winning the corner. Barcelona went into the break with a two-goal lead and didn’t take their foot off the pedal when action resumed. Within a minute of the restart, Torres almost made it three but sent his shot way wide despite being one on one with Courtois.
Elche vs Barcelona: Super sub Ferran Torres inspires The Blaugrana to victory, Elche unhappy with referee
FootballA minute later Torres made up for his miss as he put his side three goals up. Aubameyang combined well with Torres and the latter found the top corner of the net. Just four minutes later Barcelona were 4-0 up as Aubameyang got his second. Pique’s long ball found Torres who set up Aubameyang and the striker chipped an onrushing Courtois. Real Madrid players stopped defending as they saw the linesman raise his flag. The goal was disallowed but the Video Assistant Referee overruled the decision and the goal stood.
Barcelona should have made it 5-0 a few minutes later as Aubameyang sent his effort just wide. Real had a few moments but nothing to write home about. Torres had a chance to score second in the 64th minute as the Real Madrid defence once again looked lost and allowed him to run in on goal. His shot was saved by Courtois.
Fascinating facts about the best offensive midfielders in the world right now
FootballBarcelona rang in the changes late in the second half as Aubameyang was taken off, but it did little to stop their charge. Dembélé came close to scoring, as did Memphis Depay, who was also brought on. Real Madrid did come to life late in the second half as they had four shots in a row unanswered, but none of those troubled ter Stegen in the goal. Barcelona weathered the mini storm at the end to pick up a great win. Real Madrid still holds a 12-point lead over Barcelona and are almost guaranteed to win La Liga this season, but the performance in the game will leave a bitter taste in their mouths.
El Clásico: Spanish giants clash as Real Madrid host Barcelona, both teams come into the game in fine form
El Clásico is one of the most eagerly anticipated games in world football and this year’s edition is no different. What is different is the motivation for both Real Madrid and Barcelona going into the game, Sports Brief reported.
The best centre backs of all time in football history ranked
FootballOver the years El Clásico has seen both sides battling for the top spot in La Liga, but Barcelona’s poor start to the season has changed that. Barcelona are 15 points behind the arch-rivals with ten games to go in the season.
The Blaugrana are on a great run of form and have only dropped six points in their past ten games. Real Madrid on the other hand have dropped seven points in that same timeframe, Barca Universal reported.