Luis Suarez scored three as Barcelona humiliated rivals Real Madrid 5-1 in Sunday’s first El Clasico game without either Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo since 2007. Messi is nursing a hand injury while the Portuguese left for Juventus this offseason.
Philippe Coutinho opened the scoresheet in the eleventh minute. Luis Suarez converted a penalty in the 30th minute to end the first half 2-0 in Barcelona’s favor. Left back Marcelo scored for Real in the 50th minute but it was not enough to save the 13-time Champions League winners.
Suarez scored his second and third goals in the 75th and 83rd minutes to continue Madrid’s demolition. Chilean Arturo Vidal scored in the 87th minute to sink an already suffering Real Madrid. By the end of the game, Coach Joel Lopetegui’s reign at Santiago Bernabeu was all but over. Real haven’t won six La Liga games, leaving them ninth on the table and seven points below leaders Barcelona.
Lopetegui was hired to replace Zinedine Zidane who quit earlier in the year. The Frenchman led Madrid to two consecutive Champions League wins but decided to leave Madrid at his own terms. After the embarrassing defeat, it’s unlikely the Spanish manager will coach Madrid to another game this season.
Meanwhile, in Barcelona, players stayed on the pitch to celebrate the win together with fans as Real Madrid’s fans exited the stadium quickly.
