The curtain has opened on the stage of the Camp Nou and what a spectacle the Real Madrid to each of the people who said they were present in their stands, along with the thousands and thousands who lived it from their homes. Not even the most pessimistic of the ‘culés‘ could have imagined such a defeat, and not even the most optimistic of Madrid could bet that Ancelotti’s men would deliver a performance as memorable as tonight’s.
Xavi opted for the safe, what has served him so well this season, a 4-3-3 with Raphinha and Gavi as wingersLewandowski as attack point and a midfield with Busquets, Kessié and Sergi Roberto, in addition to the well-known letter from Araujo on the right side to counteract Vinicius Jr.
Precisely, the surprises were in the eleven of the visit, since Ancelotti made use of the team and chose Camavinga as left back and dressed up the attack with his, perhaps the best trident possible today: Vinicius, Benzema and Rodrygo. The midfield was left to the experience of Kroos and Modric, together with the tenacity of Fede Valverde.
A very frictional start
The match began with a lot of nervousness and a hard leg on the part of Barcelona, with the colored fact that, In the first quarter of an hour alone, there had been almost ten violations and all were by the owners of the house. Real Madrid He patiently sought to break that bolt that the locals posed, and they did not hesitate to cut with a free kick when the play got out of their control.
It gave the impression that the one that best stood up in the first half was Barcelona, although without generating too much danger. However, when everything suggested that the first 45 minutes would end with a goalless draw on the scoreboard, there was a huge surprise throughout the Camp Nou. First Courtois appeared to avoid a Lewandowski shot in a great way, the play continued with Madrid’s counterattack, Benzema entered the area and assisted Vinicius with a back pass, who subtly beat Ter Stegen and opened the account for the ‘Merengue’.
A blow that made the entire shelf of the Camp Nou, a goal that no one expected and that equalized the overall score, but the mental advantage at Real Madrid. Prior to that, the already classic pique between Vinicius and Gavi in which, at least today, the Brazilian attacker was crowned the winner, in front of an unknown Spanish soccer player and that he could do little to help his team.
Goal at halftime and thrashed in the plugin
With the second half underway, Madrid came out to impose conditions and Barcelona could no longer recover. Modric escaped on the wing, closed the path towards the center of the field and with a touch of the ball left Benzema alone, who released the ball to sleep well out of reach of the German goalkeeper, with a shot that entered the lower squad. He Real Madrid He found the advantage, passed the obligation to the locals and changed the whole scene in a matter of a few minutes.
Neither slow nor lazy, Madrid continued to attack and Vinicius was called to his game, making the defenders nervous.culés’, making the temperature rise and causing reactions like that of Kessié, who in his eagerness to take the ball away from the Brazilian’s dribbling, ended up stepping on it and committing an infraction that was sanctioned with a penalty. Of course, it was Benzema who was in charge of collecting it and ensuring the 3-0 that already settled the match.
Xavi looked for an epic comeback, the kind that only his rival is capable of, but few things changed until the end of the match, even with the income of a Ansu Fati faded and Ferran Torres that hardly created any danger. There was time for one more brushstroke from the French artist, receiving in the area and defining before the departure of Ter Stegentotally unprotected by a defense that did not help him today.
Karim Benzema sealed his hat-trick, plus the assist on Vinicius’s goal, and the Real Madrid He smiled again, not only because of the victory, but because he felt that he had recovered such a fundamental player for the duels with Chelsea for the UEFA Champions League, while the French striker continues to write with inks of glory in the historical pages of Madrid, being the first footballer of the club to score three goals in the Camp Nou from Puskas.
Martinez Munuera decreed the end and the Real Madrid made the impossible possible again. Gone was the defeat in LaLiga against this same rival, behind was the loss in the Super Cup final and that bitter taste of the first leg in the Copa del Rey. Madrid does not give up and they demonstrated it with a night that few will forget, an anthological dance in which Benzema, Modric, Vinicius and company put on the best music from their repertoire.
There will be a celebration at the end of the season at the Camp Nou, With the title of LaLiga champion, there is no doubt about that, but this will be a defeat that will remain in the memory for Xavi, his coaches and the Barcelona fans themselves. On the other side, Real Madrid continues in search of the UEFA Champions League and now marks May 6 on its calendar, when he goes out in search of the Copa del Rey trophy against Osasuna at the La Cartuja Stadium.