Cristiano Ronaldo gave the defending champions the lead once 11 minutes, but second-half goals from Carles Puyol and Eric Abidal mean Barca can feel confident of avenging their defeat to Real in last season’s final when they play the second leg at the Camp Nou next week.It was the third time Barca had beaten Real already this season, following victory in the second leg of the season-opening Super Copa and then a 3-1 win at the Bernabeu in their initial league clash of the campaign back in November.
As is now customary in El Clasico, Real manager Jose Mourinho picked Pepe in midfield, and the Portugal defender revelled in the latest instalment of his ongoing battle with Barca’s Sergio Busquets to be topped this grand recent fixture’s most irksome agitator.Mourinho additionally started Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Gonzalo Higuain together for under the fourth time in their Real careers as he set his aspect up to hit Barca on the break.Ronaldo has come in for some criticism from Real fans in recent weeks, despite him scoring twenty one goals in La Liga thus far this season to help the club go 5 points clear at the top of the league.
The world’s most expensive player has additionally not fared well against Barca, scoring simply thrice in thirteen previous matches against them in his career.However, he scored the extra-time strike that decided the final of this competition between these two sides back in April, and he struck again once only 11 minutes.
With a front 3 of Lionel Messi, Cesc Fabregas and Alexis Sanchez and with Real inviting pressure it appeared only a matter of your time before Barca started making chances. Their initial clear chance fell on sixteen minutes when Sanchez – all 5’7” of him – ghosted between two Real defenders and met Fabregas’s chipped ball with a header that rebounded off the frame of the goal.Turkish utility man Hamit Altintop was given a rare begin at right-back and for the most half held up well, although two good chances for the guests came from down that aspect.First Messi was released down the left channel and saw his clinical low strike aimed for within the near post tipped away by Casillas, before Andres Iniesta aim was uncharacteristically off as he attacked from the same position.
Barca manager Pep Guardiola made no changes at half-time on the night of his forty first birthday, and he only had to wait four minutes once the restart for a gift from is captain. At a corner Pepe fully lost his concentration and could only watch as Puyol stooped to beat Casillas with a diving header.
Soon afterward Real saw a headed chance of their own go begging. Altintop twisted and turned in front of Iniesta before chipping an inviting ball to the far post. Benzema was absolve to leap and take a look at with a header that clipped the skin of the near post with Pinto beaten.Serigo Ramos, enjoying at centre-back alongside Ricardo Carvalho, made an excellent block on Iniesta’s volley once the midfielder connected with Fabregas’s scooped ball over the top.
With Pepe and Busquets both in the book, the former stepped up his bid to be named Villain of the Match when he skulked up to Messi, sat on the ground once being fouled by substitute Jose Callejon, and stepped on his hand. The officers missed the incident, however.With twenty minutes remaining Busquets glanced an inviting free-kick from Xavi over the bar, but Barca went ahead in the tie for the first time seven minutes later via an unlikely source.Barca were now persisting with their weighted balls over the top and now it was Messi who lifted a leave out for Abidal to score only his second ever Barca goal once he chested the ball down and slid a end past Casillas.Carvalho was lucky to not see a second yellow card and subsequent red for a late challenge on substitute Adriano, but the final whistle came while not a red card in the whole ninety minutes, something of a rarity during this fixture’s recent history.
