Cristiano Ronaldo scored the winning goal as Real Madrid ended Barcelona’s long unbeaten run. Football Espana assess the players’ contributions.
Barcelona
Claudio Bravo
A little nervy but not tested really. Had no chance from Benzema’s goal nor Bale’s disallowed header.
Rating: 6/10
Dani Alves
Eyes lit up near half time when the ball sat up but his drive was wild. Otherwise tepid, not his usual forceful, energetic self.
Rating: 5/10
Gerard Pique
Solid one-on-one, capped rise as a leader with the game’s opening goal but Barca defence wasn’t strong enough.
Rating: 6/10
Javier Mascherano
Dogged and determined as ever, with one tidy piece of defending, but more than once did Madrid attackers find space in the penalty area.
Rating: 6/10
Jordi Alba
Usual darts down the left flank, beaten by Bale for a late disallowed goal and saved by a harsh free-kick against the Wales international.
Rating: 5/10
Sergio Busquets
Kept the ball ticking over but didn’t give his defence the usual protection as Madrid had Barca scrambling late on.
Rating: 5/10
Andres Iniesta
Not as prominent as usual or perhaps as Barca need him to be. Too much of Barca’s play went straight to the forwards, with no room for the captain’s subtlety.
Rating: 6/10
Ivan Rakitic
Good chance in the first half but didn’t last the game with Arda Turan introduced for the final 20 minutes or so.
Rating: 6/10
Lionel Messi
Early free kick didn’t miss by much but was too deep in the first half. Produced a delightful chip to trouble Navas but he didn’t shine as expected.
Rating: 7/10
Luis Suarez
Fluffed his lines with the game’s first chance, fired over later. A little off his best in the first half and tight-angle volley was a fine effort, but not enough.
Rating: 5/10
Neymar
Exciting when on the ball but not often enough, and not productive enough with it. Usual connection with his MSN colleagues wasn’t there.
Rating: 6/10
Subs
Arda Turan
On for Rakitic after 74 minutes. Barely involved.
Rating: 5/10
Real Madrid
Keylor Navas
Smart stop from Rakitic, bit of confusion early in the second half but an athletic save from Messi’s chip later.
Rating: 7/10
Dani Carvajal
Not as prominent as Marcelo on the other side but didn’t nothing wrong, or particularly remarkable until his run sparked Madrid’s second goal.
Rating: 7/10
Sergio Ramos
Playing on the edge from early when he was booked for dissent. Could have conceded a penalty and been sent off long before he actually was.
Rating: 4/10
Pepe
Beaten for Pique’s goal where he was more interested in stopping the scorer than attacking the ball.
Rating: 5/10
Marcelo
His run created the Madrid equaliser and was frequently his team’s most dangerous attacking player until Ronaldo came to the fore.
Rating: 7/10
Casemiro
Missed in the last Clasico and missing for most of this one, but grew into the game. Important block in injury time.
Rating: 6/10
Toni Kroos
Involvement in the equaliser when his cross deflected up for Benzema about the sum of his contribution but Madrid didn’t lose the midfield battle as they have before.
Rating: 6/10
Luka Modric
Similar to Kroos in that he didn’t catch the eye for good or bad reasons. Early on was flying into tackles in a way rarely seen from the little Croatian.
Rating: 6/10
Gareth Bale
The quietest of the MSN, a tame shot at Bravo his main contribution before his goal was disallowed and he created Ronaldo’s goal. Subbed off late on.
Rating: 7/10
Karim Benzema
Quiet and then wasteful late in the first half but made up for it with an overhead kick in the second. Nearly undid his good work with a dangerous pass in his own half. Subbed off in the 78th minute.
Rating: 7/10
Cristiano Ronaldo
Lively when switching to the right in the first half and worked harder defensively than usually given credit for. Should have played in Jese after a Madrid break, and hit the crossbar, before netting.
Rating: 8/10
Subs
Jese
On for Benzema after 78 minutes. His direct running caused problems for an unorganised Barca defence.
Rating: 7/10
Lucas Vazquez
On for Bale in the 90th minute.
Rating: N/A
