29.07.2017 » Real Madrid 2-3 Barcelona. A friendly El Clasico to warm up for August
For those who were looking for an exciting end-to-end game, that's exactly what they got from this first Clasico played in the United States. Real Madrid and Barcelona presented the fans with a highly entertaining match that the Catalans won 3-2, where neither side was capable of putting on a brilliant defensive display, in particular Zinedine Zidane's men. The Merengues conceded 3 goals, but the truth is they were fortunate enough not to concede more given the amount of chances Barcelona was allowed to create. The two teams will collide again twice in the first half of August, for the Spanish Super Cup title.
Real Madrid 2-3 Barcelona - Goals and highlights:
It hasn't been a smooth ride for Real Madrid in the United States and this Saturday night they had another bump in their pre-season campaign, after losing 3-2 to Barcelona in Miami.
Zinedine Zidane lined up a very strong starting eleven, with Navas in goal and a defense line with Marcelo, Ramos, Varane and Carvajal. The captain finally made his return, even though he would only play the first 45 minutes. In midfield, the French manager relied on Casemiro, Modric and Kovacic, saving Isco for the second half. Up front and while Cristiano Ronaldo is still on vacation, the Merengues played with Asensio, Bale and Benzema.
The match had an electrifying start, with Barcelona losing no time to charge over their arch-rivals. Lionel Messi opened hostilities right in the 3rd minute, after dribbling Luka Modric and benefiting from a rebound to beat Keylor Navas. Four minutes later, Ivan Rakitic made it two for Barcelona, finishing off a good play from Neymar on the left. Horrible start for Madrid...
The reaction was ignited by Madrid's best man on the pitch this Saturday night, Mateo Kovacic. With the clocks marking the 14th minute, the Serbian midfielder decided to move forward on the pitch, dribbled Gerard Piqué in the process and struck it past Cillessen to shorten the distances. Great goal from the 23-year old and great performance all game long!
In the 36th minute, Marco Asensio scored a tremendous solo goal and probably the best we've seen this US pre-season from Real Madrid. The Spaniard did what we would expect Bale to do, outrunning every opponent in his way and beating Cillessen for the second time on the night. All back to square one, and still nearly an entire hour left to be played...
The half-time arrived with a 2-2 draw in the scoreboard, but with the two teams showing a lot of trouble in their defensive process. The second half wouldn't be that much different, even though Barça was the only side managing to score. Neymar took a free-kick on the left, curled the ball into the heart of Real Madrid's box and Piqué, completely open, headed it past Navas to set the final score in 3-2 in favor of Barça.
Real Madrid will now have a final game left in the United States, this Wednesday night against an MLS All-Stars team. They'll travel back to Spain the day after, where Ronaldo should then finally join the group.
Real Madrid line-up vs Barcelona:
Goalkeeper: Navas
Defenders: Marcelo, Ramos, Varane, Carvajal
Midfielders: Casemiro, Modric, Kovacic
Attackers: Bale, Asensio, Benzema.
| Match stats provided by www.ronaldo7.net
|
||
|---|---|---|
Real Madrid
|
vs
|
Barcelona
|
2 |
Goals |
3 |
14 |
Shots |
11 |
8 |
Shots on goal |
5 |
4 |
Corner kicks |
8 |
11 |
Fouls commited |
12 |
2 |
Yellow cards |
2 |
0 |
Red cards |
0 |
42% |
Ball possession |
58% |
Cristiano Ronaldo next game is a pre-season fixture on July 29 of 2017 against Barcelona. You can watch Juventus live stream, MLS All Stars vs Real Madrid, Barcelona vs Chapecoense, Valerenga vs Manchester United, Arsenal vs Sevilla, and AS Roma vs Juventus, all matches provided from our stream football game pages.
Real Madrid next game:
MLS All Stars vs Real Madrid kick-off time (02-08-2017):
Beijing (China) | UTC/GMT+8: 09:00
Jakarta (Indonesia) | UTC/GMT+7: 08:00
India (New Delhi) | UTC/GMT+5.30: 06:30
Spain (Madrid) | UTC/GMT+2: 03:00
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | UTC/GMT+1: 02:00
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | UTC/GMT-3: 22:00
New York (United States) | UTC/GMT-4: 21:00
Los Angeles (United States) | UTC/GMT-7: 18:00
Sources: ronaldo7.net / realmadrid.com / goal.com / skysports.com
