Barcelona-Real Madrid score, El Clasico: Ramos, Modric too much for Messi’s side; Dest makes American history

Real Madrid ended their two-game slide by winning El Clasico on Saturday, taking down Barcelona on the road 3-1. It was a game that Real controlled and looked very sharp, especially in the second half. Real had lost to Cadiz last weekend and Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday in the Champions League, but a second-half penalty from Sergio Ramos and a late goal from Luka Modric lifted Zinedine Zidane’s team to three big points, mounting the pressure on Barca coach Ronald Koeman. 

Federico Valverde scored the opener just five minutes in, and Barca responded four minutes later through Ansu Fati, but the second half was all Real. 

Lionel Messi had a couple good looks at goal, but big saves by Thibaut Courtois made the difference in a back-and-forth, end-to-end Clasico. 

Barcelona 1, Real Madrid 3 (FT)

⚽ Real Madrid: Federico Valverde — 5’⚽ Barcelona: Ansu Fati — 8’⚽ Real Madrid: Sergio Ramos — 63′ (PK)⚽ Real Madrid: Luka Modric — 90′

Real Madrid were quite impressive

Los Blancos really needed that. There issue as of late had been slow starts — but scoring in the fifth minute is the perfect way to start. Valverde’s goal off a fine through ball from Karim Benzema set the tone, though they conceded moments later. 

Real were very calm on the ball, did well to play both inside and out, and they were just the sharper, more threatening team throughout. Barca’s poor defensive positioning and mistakes helped though, with the winner coming after Clement Lenglet pulled Ramos down on the box during a cross. 

Here’s the winning goal:

Here’s the goal that put it away:

This was a game where another goal from Barca really didn’t seem likely. Whether it was Ramos’ fine challenge in the box on Ansu Fati or Raphael Varane’s ability in the air, Real looked prepared and determined while Barca looked flat. The scoreline reflected that. 

Barcelona are in trouble 

This feels like the same Barca of last year — one with poor cohesion, missed opportunities and filled with players that are expensive and not living up to the hype, like Antoine Griezmann, Philippe Coutinho, Ousmane Dembele and more. Barca had just four shots on goal all game, while Real had nine. The passing was solid before they got into the box, but there it needed a lot of work. Messi nearly got the second all by himself, but his supporting case, outside of Ansu Fati, didn’t do enough. The team continues to play without a No. 9 striker, and it continues to hurt them. It almost feels like they are playing with 10 guys.

That’s now six El Clasicos straight without a goal for Lionel Messi.

That’s now back-to-back losses in La Liga, and their title chances could be slipping away. I know it is early, but Barca have losses in La Liga right now. Real Madrid won the title last season and only lost three. There are still seven months remaining in the season. 

Sergino Dest a positive for Barca

Dest became the first American to start and play in El Clasico, and it was a pretty strong performance from the 19-year-old American. He looked lively in defense, wasn’t caught going forward much, made a couple really nice stops inside the box, showed some flair and also used his small frame well to body attackers off the ball. He was one of the better performers in the Barca team on the day and gives them some hope moving forward. But on a day with some many negatives, his performance probably won’t be remembered by many.