Barcelona and Real Madrid tied 2-2 in the first Clasico in a La Liga fixture this season, in a match that featured masterful performances from both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ronaldo continued his remarkable recent goal-scoring record against Barça, and put his name on the scoresheet for the fifth consecutive time against his biggest rival in the 23rd minute.

The goal was simply world-class. Ronaldo found space wide of the Barcelona defense and held his run perfectly, and Karim Benzema put him through on goal. His clever near-post finish caught Victor Valdes off-guard.

While Ronaldo’s goal was technically flawless, Messi showed another mark of a great goal-scorer—punishing a defender’s mistake. Madrid center-back Pepe mistimed his jump on an attempted clearance and allowed the ball to bounce dangerously in the penalty area. Messi was the first to pounce on the opportunity and leveled the score in the 31st minute.

The first half ended in a 1-1 draw, but these superstars had plenty in store for the crowd when play resumed.

In the 61st minute, Messi won a free kick in a threatening area, then took the chance himself. He beautifully bent the ball over the wall and passed a helpless Iker Casillas.

But just four minutes later, Ronaldo took advantage of a massive gap in the Barcelona defense and found himself one-on-one with Valdes after Mesut Ozil played him through. He calmly finished the golden opportunity.

Barcelona had quality opportunities late in the match, including a shot from Martin Montoya that rang off the crossbar in the 89th minute, but no game-winner was produced.

__

Bleecher Report

Comments

comments