Barcelona flying high while Real seeking answers

Barcelona entered the latest Clasico as the team to beat in Spain, having played entertaining football from the start of the season and coming off a big win over Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

And there was no letdown on Saturday for Hansi Flick’s team, leaving their biggest rivals Real Madrid searching for answers after being humiliated at home.

With an attack that continued to click and a near-perfect defensive tactics, the Catalan club reinforced their status by routing Madrid 4-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium to increase their lead at the top of the Spanish league and gain added momentum following an already fast start under Flick.

“We already showed against Bayern that we are a great team,” said Barcelona forward Lamine Yamal, who scored one of his team’s goals. “We believe in ourselves, now people just need to see it.”

That goal made Yamal the youngest scorer in a Clasico at 17 years, 105 days, surpassing teammate Ansu Fati, who was about 250 days older in October 2020.

Barcelona has been dominant since the start of the season, with 12 wins and only two losses. The team’s attack — led by Yamal, Raphinha and league-leading scorer Robert Lewandowski — has been virtually unstoppable, having outscored opponents 47-12 in all competitions.

The defence came through to contain Kylian Mbappe in his first game against Barcelona as a Madrid player. He was one of the many Madrid players to be caught by Barcelona’s offside traps throughout the match.

Madrid, the defending league champions and Champions League title-holders, have not played their best football recently, having lost twice in their last five games.

Carlo Ancelotti’s team was booed by the home crowd against Barcelona. “We have to pick ourselves up quickly and correct the mistakes of the second half. We have to keep competing and fighting,” Ancelotti said.