A Night Of Fables And Folklore In Madrid
A fixture that screamed David versus Goliath even before it kicked-off, actually started coming to life for the latter are still to wrap their heads around about what unfolded in their den. Barcelona, the David in this context, ran amok against Real Madrid the Goliath, as their song in La Liga continued.
The Catalonian giants have witnessed a revival in their campaign ever since Xavi took over the reins, leading the way for Barcelona towards a glorious turnaround. Real Madrid offloaded some early heat as Valverde was in the thick of things with a blistering run down the center only for his cross to be dragged wide by Rodrygo.
Ter Stegen was summoned early into action when Alaba carved an impeccable delivery for Vinicius who put on some early twist and turns to sizzle past a dawdling Barca defence and fed Valverde whose resolute enterprise couldn’t get past the German custodian.
The return of Barcelona to Madrid
After the initial Madrid salvo, Barcelona slowly started clawing their way back into the fixture as Aubameyang squandered an absolute sitter from a peach of a cross from Torres, bundling his effort straight into Courtois.
The Belgian guard of the Real Madrid fortress came ablaze for the second time of the night with an electric double-save against Dembele. The game came alive in its brightest livery as both the teams refused to hold back. Real’s response to the sudden Catalonian outburst was swift as Vinicius’ low effort was staved off by Ter Stegen.
The game kept on changing momentum and it was extremely unpredictable which side will lay their hands on the opening present as both of them went at each other with renewed intent and the contest rekindled the fierce rivalry that these two clubs are known for.
It was Aubameyang who bagged the first of the night with an impeccable low-header as he perfectly latched onto a gilt-edged delivery from Ousmane Dembele whose blistering run down the right set up the formal Arsenal striker in what could have been the overture to the upcoming madness.
Moments after an ardent penalty-appeal from Real Madrid turned down, Barcelona managed to find their second opening of the night as Dembele powered home another marauding cross and this time Araujo was at the receiving end, powering home a clinical finish to double the cushion for the visitors.
Barcelona pretty much sealed the fate of the tie as soon as the game resumed after half-time. After a couple of squandered opportunities, the Spaniard found his target as he clung onto a natty flick from Aubameyang and interred his strike six feet under the Madrid post.
Aubameyang added further insult to Real Madrid’s injury as he clipped a fine finish from Ferran Torres’ gem of a pass, completing the Madrid rout firmly.
Things could have been way worse for the league leaders as Aubameyang scored another goal in quick succession only to be waived off by the stickler. Despite Real Madrid injecting pace in their latter attempts to salvage pride, it wasn’t really enough to trouble Barcelona who were in dreamland for the night.