There are few sporting contests that carry quite the
same passion as a Real Madrid-Barcelona clash.
Their meetings regularly captivate millions of fans,
not only in their homeland but across the
footballing world.
As the big day approaches, countless Spaniards,
including many who would ordinarily be immune
from the charms of the beautiful game, get swept
along by the fervour of the big event and don the
colours of their favourites.
Over the last decade, with the Galactico era in
Madrid and the dominance of European club football
by Barça, a number of world champions have faced
off. These star names include Roberto Carlos, Fabio
Cannavaro and Zinedine Zidane for Los Blancos as
well as Ronaldinho and some of the stars of
Spain’s FIFA World Cup-winning side of 2010: Xavi,
Andres Iniesta and Gerard Pique.
However, it is not just in recent times that the
teams have had such a glittering array of stars at
their disposal. Down the years some of the greatest
players ever to grace the sport have taken the field
for the big two, including Di Stefano, Ferenc Puskas,
Santillana, Hugo Sanchez, Emilio Butragueno and
Michel for Madrid, and among others Ladislao
Kubala, Luis Suarez, Johan Cruyff, Diego Maradona,
Hristo Stoichkov, Ronald Koeman, Rivaldo and
Romario for the Blaugrana.
Side swappers
And there is another even more exclusive list of
players worth mentioning, those who took the brave
decision to take the Puente Aereo (the route
connecting Barcelona and Madrid) and swap clubs.
Di Stefano, Bernd Schuster, Michael Laudrup, Luis
Enrique, Luis Figo and Ronaldo are just some of the
stars who broke the hearts and invoked the wrath
of their former supporters, for whom changing
allegiances is an act of unforgivable treason.
Real Madrid-Barcelona games have produced more
than their share of anecdotes, amazing results,
legendary performances and enmity ever since the
pair first crossed swords in 1902, a match the
Catalan side won 3-1. The first league meeting
came in 1928, when the Merengues inflicted a
painful defeat on the Blaugrana in their own back
yard.
Six years after their 1928 encounter, Real Madrid
trounced the Cules 8-2 in a 1935 league match in
the capital, although Barcelona, led by Hungarian
Ladislau Kubala, would exact a measure of revenge
by walloping their foes 7-2 in front of their home
fans in 1950.
The Di Stefano derby
In 1953 the two sides were in confrontation again,
this time in a battle to secure the services of Alfredo
Di Stefano. One month after the dispute was settled
in favour of the capital side, the legendary Argentine
they called the Blonde Arrow began a love affair
with the fans of the Bernabeu by scoring twice in a
5-0 thrashing of the old enemy.
Twenty years on in 1974, with Dutchman Rinus
Michels at the helm and his compatriot Johan
Cruyff at his mercurial best, it was the turn of the
Blaugrana to post a 5-0 scoreline, and at the
Bernabeu for good measure. Two decades later
Cruyff, by then Barça coach, presided over another
5-0 drubbing, as his Dream Team lorded it over
their rivals at the Camp Nou, with Romario running
Francisco Buyo ragged and scoring an exquisite
hat-trick.
Barely 12 months later at the Bernabeu and the
shoe would be on the other foot. This time it was
the visiting keeper Carles Busquets (father of
Sergio) who had his goal breached five times, with
a hat-trick form Chile's Ivan Zamorano doing most
the damage. The game was also notable for the
presence in the victorious Madrid side of Michael
Laudrup, a player who just a year earlier had played
for Barça in their famous 5-0 at the Camp Nou.
A decade down the road, fans of the Merengues
were certainly made to suffer at the hands of their
greatest rivals. Not only did they have to watch as
their sworn enemies claimed both the Spanish and
UEFA Champions League titles, but they felt honour
bound to stand and applaud an inspired Ronaldinho
after his two wonder-goals helped Barça to a 3-0
win at their stadium.
After the Brazilian’s departure, it was the turn of
Lionel Messi to take the famous Barça No10 shirt.
The little Argentinian scored his first Clasico goals
in March 2007, grabbing a Camp Nou hat-trick in a
pulsating 3-3 draw. Cristiano Ronaldo, his Madrid-
based rival, has had his own say in this fixture in
the past, scoring an extra-time headed winner in
the 2011 Copa Del Rey final.
El Clasico has developed into world football’s most
hotly-anticipated derby match. Whenever the two
meet, the world grinds to a halt to watch the stars
collide.
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