Real Madrid cut their gap to Barcelona at the top of La Liga to seven points after Cristiano Ronaldo struck a late winner at the Cam Nou, despite the visitors being down to 10 men. After Gerard Pique gave Barcelona the lead early in the second half, Real Madrid came back strongly and equalized through Karim Benzema’s acrobatic finish.
The momentum looked to have titled the home side’s way when Sergio Ramos was finally shown a second yellow card that really should have arrived early in the first half. But Real Madrid had the greater desire to go on and snatch the victory and did just that when Ronaldo chested down Bale’s cross and fired past Claudio Bravo with five minutes remaining.
Luis Enrique had talked before the match after wanting to deliver a “final blow” to Real Madrid in the title race. But in what was their first match since the passing of club legend Johan Cruyff, his side conspicuously lacked that clinical mindset. Barcelona dominated early on and should have gone in front, particularly with Luis Suarez somehow missing a glorious chance from six yards out.
Real Madrid, who played a risky game with a high defensive line, benefited not only from Barcelona’s wastefulness, but from the referee’s apparent determination to keep Ramos on the pitch as long as possible. The defender should have been handed a second yellow when clearly taking Lionel Messi out right on the edge of the box after 24 minutes, but survived. And he did so again in the second half when going in from behind on Suarez.
But Real Madrid did fall behind in the 56th minute when Pique powered home a header from a near-post corner. Still, Barcelona were far from at their best. And perhaps the effects of trips to South America for World Cup qualifying took its toll on Lionel Messi, Neymar and Suarez, with all three a long way from their brilliant peak.
Real Madrid must take some credit for that, though, and especially Casemiro, who made two crucial interventions in his own box and thwarted Barcelona on many more occasions simply through his positioning in front of the back four.
And, as Barcelona became increasingly lifeless after going in front, Madrid were able to get back into the game. Benzema, who was otherwise quiet, did superbly to volley home after a brilliant run from Marcelo. And Ronaldo grabbed the final word with a textbook chest down and finish.
With just seven games of the season remaining, the result is unlikely to make a real difference in the title race, although it will certainly pique the interest of Atletico Madrid, who are now just six points back and who await Barcelona in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal on Tuesday.
Match highlights:
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