Real Madrid struck an important blow in El Clásico in the battle for the league title. Thanks to goals from Kylian Mbappé and Jude Bellingham, they narrowly beat rivals Barcelona.
Embed from Getty Images
Real Madrid beat FC Barcelona 2-1 in El Clásico, pulling clear at the top after a night that mixed high tempo, controversy, and clinical finishing at key moments.
Frenkie de Jong’s presence from the start set an early tone for Barcelona. The Dutch midfielder had battled a viral infection during the week but was cleared to captain the side and anchor the visitors’ passing game. Even so, Madrid imposed the first real surge of pressure. The hosts thought they had struck after twelve minutes when Kylian Mbappé met a dropping ball with a crisp first-time volley that fizzed beyond the keeper. The celebrations were cut short when the assistant raised the flag. The offside call underlined how fine the margins would be.
Ten minutes later, margin became daylight. Jude Bellingham dropped into a pocket between Barcelona’s lines and threaded a precise ball into Mbappé’s stride. This time the Frenchman timed his run, shaped his body, and dispatched a composed finish. The goal was Mbappé’s twelfth in nine appearances against the Catalans, a tally that places him in rare company given the history of this rivalry. Only Cristiano Ronaldo with twenty in thirty four meetings and Karim Benzema with sixteen in forty six have produced more.
Barcelona responded with the poise of a team that has been through title fights before. They widened their shape, pushed a fullback higher to overload the right, and found rhythm. The equalizer arrived before the interval and came from a classic Blaugrana pattern. Marcus Rashford drove toward the byline and cut the ball back with pace and accuracy. Fermín López arrived on cue to steer it past the keeper, a cool finish that rewarded a spell of patient possession and quick rotations in midfield.
Real refused to be rattled and delivered a gut punch just before the break. From a recycled phase on the right, Éder Militão won his aerial duel and nodded the ball across the six yard box. Bellingham ghosted in unmarked at the far post and prodded home. Barcelona protested an earlier elbow by Dean Huijsen in the build up, but César Soto Grado let play continue. The sequence reflected Madrid’s balance on the night. They were comfortable mixing direct play with careful control, and they showed their trademark ruthlessness in the penalty area.
The opening quarter hour after halftime belonged to Mbappé. He twice broke behind the last line, the first ending in another offside decision that was again as tight as a lace. Minutes later, a driven Madrid attack forced a handball from Eric García in the area, and Mbappé took responsibility from the spot. His penalty was hit with conviction toward the corner, but Wojciech Szczęsny guessed right and pushed it away with a strong hand. It was a top class save that kept Barcelona in the contest and briefly shifted momentum.
Tactically, the game became a duel of structures and small adjustments. Madrid’s double pivot screened central zones while the fullbacks staggered their positions, one joining the midfield at times and the other tucking to guard transitions. Bellingham’s role was elastic. He dropped deep to help build, then surged into the box to attack the second phase. For Barcelona, De Jong tried to speed circulation and draw Madrid’s first line into overcommitting. Fermín López and a rotating cast between the lines sought to find space between center back and fullback, often relying on Rashford’s ball carrying to pry gaps open.
As the clock ticked toward the final stretch, Carlo Ancelotti freshened his front line. Vinícius Júnior was withdrawn, a decision that clearly angered the Brazilian, who walked off bristling and exchanged words with the bench. The reaction did not derail Madrid’s focus. They compacted their shape and looked to spring counters into the space Barcelona had to leave. Barcelona committed numbers and chased the equalizer with urgency. The match tightened into a series of duels, recoveries, and half chances that required full concentration from both defenses.
The best of those late chances fell to Jules Koundé with a minute remaining. The ball broke kindly at the edge of the six yard box, but the French defender hesitated for a crucial beat and the moment evaporated as white shirts swarmed. It was the kind of opening that decides El Clásico La Liga when margins are measured in heartbeats. Deep into stoppage time, Pedri received his second yellow card after a scramble near the touchline, and tempers flared. The incident sparked a confrontation between the benches and several players, a reminder of the rivalry’s intensity and the stakes attached to every duel.
When calm returned, Soto Grado ended the contest. The whistles around the Bernabéu gave way to a swell of relief and celebration. Madrid had survived Barcelona’s late push, had punished key errors, and had leaned on the star power of Mbappé and Bellingham to tilt the game. Militão’s aerial presence and Szczęsny’s penalty save for Barcelona stood out as isolated moments of excellence at either end, while De Jong’s effort to organize under fatigue underscored the visitors’ resilience even in defeat.
The wider significance is clear. The win gives Real Madrid breathing room in the title race, stretching their lead over Barcelona to five points. In a campaign where fixture congestion and fine margins define the run-in, the psychological lift of an El Clásico victory is as valuable as the points themselves. Madrid’s squad depth, seen in their ability to rotate and still withstand late pressure, will encourage the home supporters. Barcelona, for their part, showed enough organization and invention to suggest this race is not decided. They created equalizing chances, defended their box better in open play after the interval, and will feel that with cleaner execution in the final third they could have left with something.
Individually, Mbappé’s line continues to grow in this rivalry. His movement on the shoulder and his decisiveness in one on one situations repeatedly stressed Barcelona’s defensive coordination. Bellingham delivered the complete midfielder’s performance. He combined progression, pressing, and a box crashing presence that produced the decisive goal. Militão looked near his dominant best in aerial duels and recovery runs. For Barcelona, Rashford’s incisive dribbling and López’s timing into the area were bright spots, and Koundé’s late chance will replay in minds for days.
El Clásico often compresses entire seasons into ninety minutes. This edition had it all. A disallowed stunner, an onside masterclass, a cutback equalizer, a back post dagger, a saved penalty, tactical chess, a late flashpoint, and a title picture that tilts in Madrid’s favor. With a five point cushion, Real Madrid control their destiny. Barcelona must respond quickly and turn performance moments into points. If this match is any guide, the next chapter will be fierce, fast, and decided by details.
Updated: 06:19, 26 Oct 2025
