Barcelona 0-0 Real Madrid: 3 Talking Points as El Clasico ends in a draw | LaLiga 2019-20

2. Lionel Messi's poor day at the office

Lionel Messi misses a trick as Real Madrid's defenders happily look on

It's not often we say this (in fact, it's a unicorn occurrence) - Lionel Messi wasn't the best player on his team at the end of the encounter. Barca's talisman performed poorly in the game (by his standards), as he wasn't able to shake off the relentless Real Madrid defensive pressure for much of the battle, and only managed to spearhead a handful of skirmishes into the Los Blancos defence.

It was a game the entire Barca attack and Messi didn't turn up, as they were thwarted at every turn by Zinedine Zidane's men snapping at their heels with relentless intensity. Messi had only two great chances to score, but he was thwarted by Sergio Ramos in the first half, and he fluffed his lines in front of goal on the hour mark.

At the end of the encounter, Messi had just 2 shots with only one on target, and he only managed to thread just one key pass all game. Those are dismal numbers by his lofty standards.

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1. The defenders stand tall

Sergio Ramos thwarts Luis Suarez

In a fixture always graced by some of the most renowned attacking talents in world football, this instalment will be remembered more for defensive heroics than attacking manoeuvres. On both sides of the aisle, the defenders were a joy to watch, as they consistently foiled the attackers.

The likes of Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Gerard Pique, Sergio Ramos, and Casemiro can especially be singled out, as the 0-0 scoreline was their doing more than anything else. Ter Stegen was on hand to deny Real Madrid on a couple of occasions, as he deftly thwarted the likes of Karim Benzema, Casemiro, and Fede Valverde, particularly in the first half.

Balls were also cleared off the line, as veteran defenders, Pique and Ramos denied strikers on either end of the divide with gilt-edged interceptions.