March 20, (THEWILL) – Barcelona extended their lead in the La Liga table to a whopping 12 points with just 12 games left to play, thanks to an El Clasico win over arch-rivals Real Madrid.
The game was a tightly contested affair, with both sides pushing forward in search of the crucial three points. An own goal from Ronald Araujo had put Madrid in front, but goals from Sergi Roberto and Franck Kessie ensured the win for Barcelona at Camp Nou.
The tempo of the game was set early on by two long-range efforts from star number nines, Robert Lewandowski and Karim Benzema, both of which forced the opposition goalkeepers into smart saves. Barcelona created the first good chance of the game in the fifth minute, but Raphinha’s header was brilliantly saved by Thibaut Courtois.
Real Madrid took the lead just a few minutes later with a rather tame chipped cross from Vinicius Junior flicking off the head of Ronald Araujo and into the back of his own net. Barcelona pressed forward with real intent thereafter and came close to drawing level in the 23rd minute, but ex-Chelsea man, Andreas Christensen, was unable to keep his header on target. The home side finally got their goal in the final minute of the first half, through Sergi Roberto.
The second half was fiercely contested, with both sides pushing forward in search of the winner. Barcelona forced Courtois into another great save in the final 15 minutes before Franck Kessie scored the winning goal in the final minute of the game. Barca will visit Elche on April 1, after the international break, while Real Madrid will host Real Valladolid the following day.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
