Barcelona beat Real Madrid 3-0 in first El Clasico; big brawl breaks out in ‘friendly’

Barcelona delivered a stunning performance, securing a 3-0 victory over their arch-rivals Real Madrid in the first ‘El Clasico’ of the season, held at the AT&T Stadium in Dallas on Sunday. The match, which saw Ousmane Dembele, Fermin Lopez Martin and Ferran Torres put their names on the score sheet, witnessed historic attendance as it […]

Follow us:

Barcelona delivered a stunning performance, securing a 3-0 victory over their arch-rivals Real Madrid in the first ‘El Clasico’ of the season, held at the AT&T Stadium in Dallas on Sunday.

The match, which saw Ousmane Dembele, Fermin Lopez Martin and Ferran Torres put their names on the score sheet, witnessed historic attendance as it drew the largest crowd ever for an El Clasico in the United States and became the highest-attended club soccer match in the history of AT&T Stadium.

Although this encounter was part of their pre-season tours, the intensity and passion between these two Spanish giants turned the friendly into a fiercely competitive battle. The match saw a total of 27 fouls and seven yellow cards, three to Barcelona and four to Real Madrid, reflecting the fierce nature of the rivalry.

Barcelona dominated the first half, displaying attacking prowess that put Real Madrid on the back foot. New signing Oriol Romeu nearly opened the scoring early on with a thunderous shot that hit the crossbar, and Barcelona eventually opened the scoring a few minutes later.

In the 15th minute, a brilliantly executed free-kick routine saw Ilkay Gundogan pass to Pedri just outside the box, who then threaded a through ball to Ousmane Dembele, leading to a powerful strike past the Real Madrid goalkeeper.

Real Madrid had a chance to equalise when they were awarded a penalty, but Vinicius Junior’s shot hit the crossbar, leaving them trailing 1-0 at half-time.

In the second half, Real Madrid continued to pile on the pressure, with four attempts on goal hitting the crossbar. However, a defensive mistake allowed Barcelona youngster Fermin Lopez Martin to extend their lead with a stunning left-footed strike from outside the box in the 85th minute. In injury time, Ferran Torres added the icing on the cake, securing Barcelona’s convincing 3-0 victory.

The boiling point in the ‘friendly’ rivalry came when Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong put a sliding challenge from behind on Eder Militao, which led to a scuffle breaking out between both sets of players.

Despite the flaring tempers, Barcelona showcased their attacking prowess, taking 12 shots at the Real goal, seven of which were on target, and maintaining 47% ball possession. They completed 458 passes with an accuracy of 86% while conceding 17 fouls and receiving three yellow cards.

On the other hand, Real Madrid had 29 shots on goal, with only five on target. They held 53% possession and completed 498 passes with an accuracy of 88%. Real conceded 10 fouls and received four yellow cards during the match.

Barcelona, Real Madrid managers both look at positives after El Clasico result

Despite the impressive performance, Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez remained grounded, admitting that the scoreline might be flattering.

“The result could have been different, the result is a bit misleading, Madrid also had many chances and we shouldn’t be overconfident,” Xavi said.

“The result is very favorable but it doesn’t mean we played a super match. There are many things to improve. It was a very even match in which Madrid also had many chances.”

Xavi also highlighted the need for improvement and acknowledged that Real Madrid possessed a deeper squad, posing a challenge for the upcoming season.

“I think Madrid have a much bigger squad than us. At the end of the game they were taking players out and they have many players in the midfield, physical, technical, they have a wide range of possibilities,” he said.

“We tried to play and impose our game and in many moments we succeeded. I am satisfied with the way we competed and in many moments we looked like what we want to be,” the Barcelona manager concluded.

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti also downplayed the result, emphasising the positives from the match.

“The result is the least important thing. It hurts to lose, but I’ll keep the good things we did. The result is the least important thing. It hurts to lose, but I’ll keep the good things we did,” Ancelotti said.

Barcelona’s next pre-season fixture is against AC Milan on Wednesday, while Real Madrid will face Juventus on Thursday for their final pre-season match. As the season approaches, both teams will aim to refine their strategies and maintain their competitive edge for the challenges ahead.