Ibra-cadabra!!!!

FC Barcelona have capped off an extra ordinary week by winning their 3^rd straight clásico against their arch rivals Real Madrid.

After a very close first half within which Madrid could have taken the lead twice, both from the boot of Cristiano Ronaldo, Barcelona began to take control of the game. Madrid’s tactics were very apparent from the early goings in the game. Lassana Diarra, who is usually a very composed sitting midfielder, was found out of his depth when faced with the prospect of Xavi’s incisive passing and Iniesta’s impeccable close control. His frustration became apparent with his rash challenges which led to his two yellow cards and eventual red. Madrid’s entire backline, all except Sergio Ramos who I found was exceptional in the back, was playing more like wrestlers than footballers.

Kaka was his usual brilliant self providing defence splitting passes and running at the Barcelona rear guard constantly keeping them on the back foot, but Puyol and Cristiano’s father (Pique) kept the Merengues at bay. The combination of lack of match fitness as well as his affinity to big game choking showed with his abortions in front of Valdes’ goal, two well taken misses. He was eventually replaced by Benzema in the second half who was anonymous for his time on the field.

Barça had the majority of possession for the entire match but had nothing to show for it going into the second half. They were behind on shots on goal; their attack was uncharacteristically stagnant moving forward. The defence kept them afloat going into the half, giving their coach who has been nothing short of brilliant for the past two terms enough time to do what he does best. In the 50^th minute Zlatan Ibrahimovic was introduced for the struggling Henry and instantly the tide was changed. He injected the kind of strength, pace and intelligence needed to deal with the Madrid thugs. This positive play eventually paid off with a beautifully placed cross from Dynamite Dani, straight to his boot on the far post and he gave CR7 a master class in finishing. This was all she wrote.

An unfortunate red card for Sergio Busquets in the 62nd minute gave Madrid a glimmer of hope, but La Blaugrana responded well. Keita came off and was replaced by Toure and it was business as usual. From here on Barça continued with their dominance in the possession front which clearly agitated Real Madrid and led to Diarra’s sending off.

As Jay Z famously said, “You can pay for school but you can’t buy class!” I think this was most evident here. Individualism will continue to poison Real Madrid, whereas Barcelona continues to thrive based on their values of teamwork and effort. Maybe next year when Real gel a little more we might see a different result, but for now, they are left licking their wounds.