A remarkably contentious — almost hilariously so — El Clasico ended 2-2, a result that won’t particularly bother Real Madrid but one that sees Barcelona extend this season’s unbeaten league run to 35 matches. If you’re a Real Madrid fan, Barcelona got away with murder; if you’re a Barcelona fan, Real Madrid got special treatment. So just another El Clasico, really.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise but El Clasico is lit. Barcelona began the match on the front foot with Lionel Messi getting on the ball in some dangerous areas for the champions-elect.
However, the opening goal was started and finished by Luis Suarez, the Uruguayan releasing Sergi Roberto on the wing before expertly finishing the Spanish full back’s immaculate cross in the 10th minute.
Roberto’s final ball was spectacular, but this is just brilliant forward play from Suarez.
A vintage N'Golo Kante tackle prevented the world's most feared counterattack from delivering. Liverpool's triumverate of Mo Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino has been devastating on the counter all season, and it looked as if they would break through first on Sunday with Sadio Mane charging at a retreating Gary Cahill.
Then N'Golo Kante tracked back and snuffed out the attack.
What was in that water, Didier Drogba?
Phoenix Rising was playing LA Galaxy II in the USL on Friday night and the home side at the Phoenix Rising Soccer Complex did not get off to a strong start. The visitors scored three first-half goals and held a two-goal advantage heading into the break.
But then, deep into the second half, Didier Drogba stole a kid’s water bottle from the sideline and everything changed. Drogba immediately assisted a goal with a corner kick and seven minutes later put Phoenix ahead with a penalty kick as the Rising won 4-3.
Yes, Cristiano Ronaldo’s bicycle kick against Juventus was very nice. And of course, that title-clinching hat-trick that Lionel Messi registered against Deportivo was very nice as well. But does that mean, with regards to Sunday’s El Clasico, that we should only focus on the 10-time Ballon d’Or winners?
Yes, it turns out, a Clásico Capitalino in the quarterfinals of the Clausura playoffs is quite lit. A 38-minute brace from Mateus Uribe and controversial penalty converted by Jeremy Menez put Club America up three at Estadio Olimpico Universitario, but a Pumas penalty, converted by Nicolas Castillo, has given life to the underdogs at halftime.
If Real Madrid wins a third straight Champions League title on May 26 in Kiev, Cristiano Ronaldo and company will have earned every bit of it. Karim Benzema scored two goals for Real Madrid vs Bayern Munich on Tuesday at the Bernabeu as the Merengues advanced to the Champions League final for the third straight year with a 2-2 draw and 4-3 aggregate victory.
Just eight minutes after Joshua Kimmich had given Bayern Munich a dream start at the Bernabeu, Real Madrid restored their aggregate lead (3-2) after a sweeping 28-pass move was finally finished off by Karim Benzema.
How quickly can a man go from hero to villain?
For Kalidou Koulibaly, it was less than ten minutes of actual game time. After scoring the winning goal against Juventus in the dying minutes, reviving Napoli’s floundering title challenge, he was sent off in the first five minutes of the next game away to Fiorentina, squandering any resurgent hopes by setting the scene for a 3-0 thrashing by the home side.
A Lionel Messi hat-trick — with all three goals being assisted by Luis Suarez — and a solitary strike from Philippe Coutinho lifted Barcelona to a 4-2 victory over Deportivo on Sunday, securing the club’s 25th La Liga title with four matches still to play.
Real Madrid could yet ruin Barca’s unbeaten domestic campaign in next Sunday’s El Clasico, but a seventh La Liga title in 10 years was a fitting reward for a club that’s currently gone through 34 match days unbeaten (26 wins and 8 draws).