News
SÁB 25.10.2014
Real Madrid CF defeated FC Barcelona 3-1 on matchday 9 of the Liga BBVA. With their victory Carlo Ancelotti’s side closed the gap on their rivals, who stay top of the competition by a single point.
The Azulgranas struck the first blow, silencing the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. It was the fourth minute when striker Luis Suárez, on his Liga BBVA debut, delivered a perfect cross to Neymar, who beat Iker Casillas to make it 0-1. After the goal, the home side responded and had their best spell of the first half. Karim Benzema had two good chances to level the match, the best of them hitting the crossbar on 10 minutes.
When it looked like FC Barcelona had gone down a gear, Leo Messi appeared to break through the Real Madrid defence and he could have extended his team's lead but had no luck in front of goal. It was end-to-end stuff, but the referee awarded a penalty when Gerard Piqué hand-balled in the area, and Cristiano Ronaldo scored the equaliser before half time.
After the break, Luis Enrique's men were unable to create chances and showed some weaknesses in defence that Real Madrid were able to exploit. First it was an unmarked Pepe who finished off a Toni Kroos corner, and later Benzema made it 3-1 after an excellent counter-attack from the home side. A crucial victory for the Whites, who are just a point behind their rivals.
© LALIGA - 2014