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Barcelona fell to a late 3-2 defeat at the hands of arch-rivals Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu in LaLiga on Sunday, April 21.
Barca entered this contest on the back of a good run of form. Having won six games on the bounce, their streak broke with a 4-1 defeat against Paris Saint-Germain in their last game. That saw them eliminated from the UEFA Champions League after losing 6-4 on aggregate in the quarter-finals.
However, Xavi Hernandez and his men were determined to finish their league campaign with a flourish. The Spaniard fielded a strong lineup.
Barcelona made a wonderful start to the contest and raced into an early lead. Raphinha provided an assist for Andreas Christensen to convert and put the visitors 1-0 up after just six minutes. However, their lead was short-lived as Real Madrid leveled the game just 12 minutes later. Pau Cubarsi fouled Lucas Vazquez in the box to concede a penalty, which Vinicius Junior converted to make it 1-1.
Both Real Madrid and Barcelona shared the ball nearly equally in the first period. Apart from their respective goals, neither side managed more than two shots on target as the two teams were tied 1-1 at the half-time interval.
Xavi made one change at the break as Fermin Lopez replaced the goalscorer Christensen for reasons unknown. However, the substitute had a huge impact shortly after coming on as he restored Barcelona's lead to make it 2-1 after 69 minutes. Their advantage was short-lived once again, though, as Vinicius Junior provided an assist for Lucas Vazquez to score and make it 2-2.
Both sides went back-and-forth at each other for the remainder of the contest as they tried to snatch victory. However, Real Madrid had the last laugh as Jude Bellingham scored from Vazquez's assist to make it 3-2 in the 91st minute. Barcelona could not come up with a response and succumbed to defeat. On that note, let's take a look at their player ratings.
Barcelona Player Ratings
Marc-Andre ter Stegen - 7.5/10
He made five saves throughout the course of the contest to keep Barcelona in the game. He also played seven long balls.
Jules Kounde - 7/10
Kounde had a decent game in defence as he won seven duels and made two clearances and two tackles. He also played one key pass.
Ronald Araujo - 6.5/10
Araujo won just one duel and made six clearances. He also played one key pass and four long balls.
Pau Cubarsi - 6/10
Cubarsi had a rather poor outing for Barcelona as he conceded a penalty and ruined his team's momentum.
Joao Cancelo - 6.5/10
Cancelo, too, failed to impress on the left flank once again.
Ilkay Gundogan - 7/10
Gundogan had a good game in midfield as he passed the ball with 99% accuracy, including three key passes and three long balls. He also won two duels.
Andreas Christensen - 7/10
Christensen scored an early goal to put Barcelona up 1-0 after six minutes. He also won three duels and was subbed off at half-time.
Frenkie de Jong - 6.5/10
De Jong played well in the first half but exited the game at the break due to an injury.
Lamine Yamal - 7.5/10
Yamal was active in the final third as he attempted three shots, with all of them hitting the target. He also won five duels.
Robert Lewandowski - 6.5/10
Lewandowski had a subpar game as he failed to hit the target with his only two efforts throughout the contest.
Raphinha - 7/10
Raphinha had a good game on the left flank as he passed the ball with 80% accuracy, including two key passes and two crosses. He also assisted Christensen's early goal.
Substitutes
Pedri - 6.5/10
Pedri replaced the injured de Jong at the half-time break and put in a good performance in midfield.
Fermin Lopez - 7/10
One goalscorer replaced the other as Lopez came on for Christensen and scored Barcelona's second goal.
Ferran Torres - 6.5/10
He replaced Lewandowski in the second half and put in a decent performance.
Joao Felix - 6.5/10
He replaced Raphinha shortly after the hour-mark and played well.
