Barcelona on brink of La Liga title after thrilling Clasico victory over Real Madrid

Barcelona have all but secured their 28th La Liga crown after a thrilling 4-3 Clasico victory over Real Madrid on Sunday. Hansi Flick's side fought back from two goals down before going on to secure their fourth victory over their bitter rivals this season which takes Barca seven points clear at the top with three games left to play. The Catalan side had to pick themselves up from a devastating Uefa Champions League semi-final exit against Inter Mila n on Wednesday which saw them lose 4-3 on the night in Italy and 7-6 on aggregate. “It was obviously very important to win today. It's great to have this game after the Champions League, I think it's already forgotten,” Barca's teen star Lamine Yamal said after the game. “Suffering is what makes you strong and what teaches you to correct the mistakes you make. They didn't create any clear-cut chances other than the goals. “It was very important to win today to get closer to the league title. We are delighted.” And there was goals galore once again here after a breathless clash at the Olympic Stadium against second-placed Real, who made a flying start to the game thanks to a Kylian Mbappe double. The first came when the Frenchman was brought down in the box by home goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny after a poor back-pass by Pau Cubarsi, with Mbappe making no mistake from the spot in the fifth minute. Less than 10 minutes later, it was two when Vinicius Junior slipped a ball through to the former Paris Saint-Germain attacker who glided through Barcelona's defence before slotting home. Barca, though, were quickly back in the game when defender Eric Garcia headed home a Ferran Torres corner for the game's third goal with less than 20 minutes on the clock. The scores were level just after the half-hour mark after Torres supplied Yamal before the 17-year-old curled home in what has already become trademark fashion in what is still a fledgling career. And just two minutes later, Barca were in front when Lucas Vazquez and Kylian Mbappe collided with each other, gifting the ball to Pedri who slipped in Raphinha with the Brazilian finishing well. It was 4-2 just before half-time when Vazquez was caught in possession by Torres who made it assist No 3 of the game by playing it into the path of Raphinha who scored his 18th league goal of the season. The goals dried up after the break, if not the excitement. Yamal was denied a second goal by the offside flag while Mbappe nearly completed his hat-trick but curled a shot just wide. Mbappe did complete his treble in the 70th minute after a quick counter-attack ended with Vinicius Junior threading the ball through to the Frenchman who made it 4-3. It moved him to 27 La Liga goals this season, two ahead of Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski – who was an unused substitute – at the top of the scoring charts Yamal again missed out on a second when Thibaut Courtois saved his low strike, before the Euro 2024 winner crossed for Raphinha only for the attacker to miss his hat-trick opportunity from close range. Barca had penalty claims turned down when the ball struck Aurelien Tchouameni on the arm but referee Alejandro Jose Hernandez Hernandez decided against awarding a spot kick, despite being asked by VAR to review the incident on the pitchside monitor. Then 21-year-old substitute Victor Munoz missed a glorious chance to become a Real hero with two minutes left when he shot wide after being put clean through on goal moments after coming on. There was still time for one last bit of drama when birthday boy Fermin Lopez slalomed into the box to curl home a fifth for Barca to send players and fans wild – only for the goal to disallowed for a handball in the build-up. It was the prove the final act of a remarkable game which puts Barcelona on the brink of yet another title with games against Espanyol, Villarreal and Athletic Club still to come. For Real, it was a hammer blow to what looks set to end up a campaign without any silverware having secured the Champions League and La Liga double last season. And for veteran manager Carlo Ancelotti, it was a miserable last Clasico ahead of the Italian's exit this summer after two trophy-laden spells in charge. There will be plenty for his likely replacement Xabi Alonso to do if he is to wrestle the La Liga crown back to the Spanish capital next season. “We have to defend better, that is quite evident from today's game, we defended badly and that's that,” said Ancelotti. “Mbappe did well … in an attacking sense the team had clear ideas, but we could have defended better.”

Barcelona on brink of La Liga title after thrilling Clasico victory over Real Madrid

Hansi Flick's side fight back from two goals down before going on to win 4-3, despite Mbappe hat-trick, and move seven points clear at top