Five classic El Clasicos: The greatest showdowns between Real Madrid and Barcelona

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Few games on Earth are as glamorous or as fiery as clashes between Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona

Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos
(Image credit: Getty)

Real Madrid host Barcelona on Sunday night as the top two teams in LaLiga - level on points after eight matches - go toe-to-toe in El Clasico.

Both teams know that victory at the Bernabeu could have a major impact on the title race. Here, FFT takes a look at five memorable meetings between the two Spanish superpowers.

Real Madrid 3-4 Barcelona (March 2014)

Lionel Messi’s hat-trick inspired a thrilling win for Barcelona against 10-man
Real Madrid. Andres Iniesta put the visitors ahead before Karim Benzema’s brace turned things around. Messi then struck with his first just before half-time to level the score. A Cristiano Ronaldo penalty put the hosts 3-2 ahead before Sergio Ramos was sent off – and Messi completed his hat-trick with two penalties.

Barcelona 5-0 Real Madrid (November 2010)

Pep Guardiola’s Barca inflicted the biggest margin of defeat in an El
Clasico since 1994 when they beat Jose Mourinho’s Real 5-0 at the Nou Camp. The hosts never looked back after going 2-0 up inside 18 minutes through Xavi and Pedro. Messi did not score but he set up David Villa for the third and fourth goals in the space of three second-half minutes before Jeffren wrapped up the win after Ramos received a red card.

Real Madrid 2-6 Barcelona (May 2009)

Carles Puyol, Barcelona

Carles Puyol was on the scoresheet as Barcelona thrashed Real Madrid in front of their own fans in 2009 (Dave Thompson/PA)

Barcelona stormed to a 6-2 win at the Bernabeu on their way to their first title for three years in 2009. Gonzalo Higuain nodded Real into the lead before Thierry Henry scored the equaliser and defender Carles Puyol headed his side ahead. Messi struck either side of a Ramos header to keep Barca in front before Henry tapped in his second and Gerard Pique added a sixth.

Real Madrid 4-2 Barcelona (April 2005)

Zinedine Zidane

Zinedine Zidane, right, scored the opening goal for Real against Barca in the 2005 clash (David Davies/PA) (Image credit: Getty)

At the peak of the Galacticos era, Michael Owen and David Beckham inspired Real to a 4-2 win over their arch rivals. Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo put Los Blancos two goals up inside 20 minutes before Samuel Eto’o pulled one back. Raul made it 3-1 on the stroke of half-time before Beckham picked out Owen, who beat Victor Valdes to make it 4-1 in the 65th minute. Ronaldinho expertly curled in a free-kick to reduce the arrears but it was too little too late.

Real Madrid 5-0 Barcelona (January 1995)

Almost a year after a 5-0 loss at the Nou Camp, Jorge Valdano’s Real stormed to victory by the same margin at the Bernabeu. A first-half hat-trick from Chilean striker Ivan Zamorano put the game beyond the Catalans before Luis Enrique, who went on to manage and play for Barcelona, added the fourth. Jose Amavisca scored the fifth goal as Real went on to claim the title.

Ed McCambridge
Ed McCambridge
Staff Writer

Ed is a staff writer at FourFourTwo, working across the magazine and website. A German speaker, he’s been working as a football reporter in Berlin since 2015, predominantly covering the Bundesliga and Germany's national team. Favourite FFT features include an exclusive interview with Jude Bellingham following the youngster’s move to Borussia Dortmund in 2020, a history of the Berlin Derby since the fall of the Wall and a celebration of Kevin Keegan’s playing career.