10 points, they lead by, and Ronaldo can't quite believe how Lucas Hernandez got himself in the way of that late shot of his. A poor second half ended rather well - and a physically brutal derby comes to an end 0-0.
That's all from me, Anirudh Menon! Thanks for reading, and for the mails!
89' OH MY GOD WHAT A BLOCK LUCAS! WHAT. A. BLOCK! Marcelo races at Godin and plays in Ronaldo who is all by himself at the edge of the box... he races into the box and smashes it at goal, but Lucas throws his body on the line and blocks it away. Diego Godin, meanwhile, gets into the book for shouting too loudly at the referee.
87' Marcelo wins a corner... Isco swings it into Oblak's hands, who kicks it straight back to Casilla. 2 out of the past 4 European finals were between these two sides, ladies and gentlemen.
86' OH MAMMA! OH MY! Kroos skips past Gabi and absolutely smashes it at goal, but Oblak does well to parry it out... and Godin does even better to makes sure Ronaldo doesn't get to it!
83' Casemiro stops an Atleti counter and Madrid launch one of their own - Marcelo is released into space on the left, but his ball into the box is scraped clear by Godin. Madrid come right back, and some slick passing ends up with Ronaldo winning a corner off Lucas Hernandez.
82' Ronaldo tries to flick the ball from behind his back off the corner, then tries to smack the rebound at goal, but it bounces off Godin's arm and pings away... Ronaldo screams for a penalty, but he's never getting that - Godin was too close, and his arm was not in an unnatural position whatsover.
81' WOOOOF! He leathers another one at goal, but Oblak does well to palm it away for a corner.... FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT! Nacho and Lucas Hernandez gets a yellow after a bout of argy-bargy inside the Atleti box.
80' Silly, silly foul from Juanfran as he pulls back Marcelo with the Brazilian going nowhere down the left flank. Cristiano Ronaldo is taking this... from an acute angle.
79' From the corner, Carrasco smashes a ball into Ronaldo's shoulders and screams for a penalty, but the ref rightly asks him to bugger off and awards a corner. Which is wasted.
78' OH MY LORDIE LORD! Torres rips apart Madrid with a superb run before feeding Gameiro who chips Casilla with audacious brilliance... Varane does brilliantly to head it away! VIVA EL NINO!
76' Marco Asensio jogs onto a collection of whistles and jeers in the place of Karim Benzema, while Simeone hooks Angel Correa and antoine Griezmann off for Kevin Gameiro and El Nino Fernando Torres
75' Toni Kroos marauds into the box, dummies a shot, finds space inside the box and crosses the ball out of play. SIGH! OH RONALDO! MODIRC PLAYS THE BALL TO RONALDO'S FEET AND THE PORTUGUESE DOES WELL TO DRAG THE BALL FORWARD AND TAKE A SNAPSHOT, BUT IT'S WELL WIDE!
71' Lucas Hernande absolutely smashes into Dani Carvajal - it all happened in front of Simeone and El Cholo tells the referee nothing has happened, but for Carvajal diving. The ref, as has been his wont tonight, buys it.
70' Koke plays a ball into the box for Correa, and it ends up being a corner for Atleti - IT DOESN'T CLEAR THE FIRST MAN! OH MY! As Madrid break through Modric, Koke takes the yellow and brings him down.
66' Benzema tries to play in Ronaldo with a clever first time pass but he's not getting to it... at the other end, Griezmann, Casilla, and Varane go for the ball and Varane ends up on the floor clutching the small of his back. Zidane will be praying that he recovers from that. Pronto.
63' To watch Luka Modric in full flow is to watch poetry in motion. He glides past challenges as he races into the Atleti half, and Saul does what his coach would have done in his position if he'd been on the field - cuts him down from behind and accepts the inevitable yellow with a grimace
62' Correa is scything Real open again, and again, and again... but he is not able to do anything with it. This time his pass across the face of the Real box is met by nothing but the smogy air of Madrid.
61' Isco sees Gabi stretch out his leg and falls over it. That should be a yellow - for a dive. Carrasco then tries to take on Nacho on the left wing, but just plays it out to touch. This half has been as bad as the first was good.
58' Marcelo swings in a ball that appears to hit the outstretched arm of Savic, but the ref waves play on. Atleti break from that position and Griezmann has the ball with it being 3 v 2 in his side's favour... but the Frenchman slows play down for some reason only he'll know and the chance to kill Madrid off goes abegging.
56' Koke does ever so well to bundle his way past two Madrid players - a whirlwind of pure grit, determination, and Cholo - and tee up Saul... who's ambitious shot flies well wide of Casilla's far post.
55' OOOOO! Carvajal screams past Godin, the Uruguayan losing balance, and the referee nonsensically blows his whistle for a foul. Against Carvajal. That's not a foul, ref, that's gravity.
53' Casemiro and Gabi go flying into a challenge... obviously, the Brazilian wins the freekick. Meanwhile, the utterly wasteful Thomas Partey is taken off for the usually electric Yannick Carrasco.
52' This one is swung in, but's cleared easily... Marcelo's fling back into the box is not as easily cleared and Correa needs to be on his toes to nick it away from Isco. He tries to dribble his way into Madrid's half, but Modric reads the Atleti lad's intentions and stops him in his tracks.
50' Nice toches from Isco, Marcelo, Ronaldo, and Modric precede Carvajal curling a lovely ball into the far post where Savic has to be alive to the danger of Isco lurking behind him. The corner is played short and it devolves into a regular attack.
48' OH MAMMA! RONALDO! WOOF! After having connected with nothing but thin air from Carvajal's cut-back, he gets the ball back and plays an exquisite backheel to Modric inside the box but his shot is blocked by a trademark Godin block
Akash Mishra has been fascinated "to see the breathtaking pace from both the sides who are looking increasingly ominous with each attack." As well he should be. This Madrid derby has had everything.. except the Vicente Calderon. I miss that place, this one - as grand as it is - just doesn't speak to the soul as much.
Ah, screw it, it's just the nostalgic old man in me speaking.
PEEP! HALFTIME! ATLETICO MADRID 0 - 0 REAL MADRID!
How is this game nil-nil?
How are there 22 players still on the field?
Some things you will never understand, but it's been a helluva derby - exciting, brutally physically teetering on the brink of outright violence, nonsensically refereed and with Ronaldo being Ronaldo.
46' TWO MINUTES ADDED ON. Marcelo has a shot. It's blocked. Carvajal tries to scythe through the middle and he is blocked off. Partey tries to release Griezmann into the Madrid half, but Varane is simply too quick for his compatriot.
45' A lovely Kroos turn-and-pass precedes a lovelier Isco pass into Marcelo's smart run and the Brazilian finds himself all to himself inside the box - but he can't find the killer pass
44' Partey takes the corner, and I've seen better ones being taken in the Copa Del Rey by third division sides. WHAT IS HAPPENING, DIEGO? I can't wrap my head around just how poor Atleti's set-pieces have been this season.
40' Marcelo skips past two Atleti defenders before laying it out to Isco. The magical Spaniard dances past Juanfran, but can only send a weak, weak pass straight at Savic. Ronaldo, at the far post, is FURIOUUUUUUS
THAT'S A 0-0 AND IT'S ADVANTAGE BARCELONA!
10 points, they lead by, and Ronaldo can't quite believe how Lucas Hernandez got himself in the way of that late shot of his. A poor second half ended rather well - and a physically brutal derby comes to an end 0-0.
That's all from me, Anirudh Menon! Thanks for reading, and for the mails!
'twas a pleasure.
Toodle-ooo