El Clasico result: Real Madrid 3-2 Barcelona
- 6′: Christensen headed Barcelona into an early lead on a corner.
- 18′: Vinicius Jr scored a penalty after Cubarsi fouled Vazquez in the box.
- 28′: VAR declined to award Yamal a goal after a goal-line save by Lunin.
- 45+6′: De Jong left the match on a stretcher after injuring his ankle.
- 69′: Fermin tapped home to give Barca a 2-1 lead.
- 73′: Lucas Vazquez slammed home an equaliser for Real Madrid.
- 90+1′: Bellingham scored to give Madrid their first lead of the game.
-
Barcelona realistically had to take all three points to keep their faint hopes of defending their La Liga crown alive. Even (what looked like being) a spirited draw would have felt like an anti-climactic fizzling out to their late-season revival.
Bellingham’s late strike looks like the crushing blow that will bring an inconsistent season, and Xavi’s tumultuous reign as manager, to a brutal and trophy-less close.
Bellingham’s big moment
A 2-2 draw would have suited Real Madrid fine, but it was perhaps inevitable that Jude Bellingham would break his scoring drought against his side’s great rivals. He ghosted in unmarked in stoppage time to get on the end of Lucas Vazquez’s low cross — as if Barca’s defenders had forgotten he could score — and sent a shot high into the net.
Cue that celebration, which Madrid fans will surely have missed since February.
