Marcus Rashford’s stunning free-kick opened the scoring before Ferran Torres added a second as Barcelona clinched the LaLiga title in front of bitter rivals Real Madrid at Spotify Camp Nou.
For the first time in nearly a century, LaLiga was decided by a Clásico with Barcelona, on this occasion, clinching their 29th league title.
It is a victory that rubs salt in the wounds of a trophy-less Real Madrid side, who have lived through a week of chaos behind the scenes.
Kylian Mbappe, who was absent on the night, was at the heart of internal tensions before a training ground bust-up between Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde made international news.
Tchouameni was controversially handed a start by Alvaro Arbeloa, with Valverde absent, but it was as though Madrid’s fighting spirit had been reserved for their training ground as they wilted under pressure from Barca who retained their LaLiga crown.
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Marcus Rashford opened the scoring for Barcelona with this sensational free-kick goal against Real Madrid
Rashford embodied Barcelona’s front-footed start as the hosts brought the party atmosphere. The forward, on loan from Manchester United, stepped up and drilled his free-kick into the far corner to set the tone, beating Thibault Courtois at full stretch.
It was a rampant spell that saw Real struggle to find their bearings. With the away defence at sixes and sevens, Dani Olmo and Ferran took full advantage, combining superbly for their second.
Barcelona’s Ferran Torres celebrates his side’s second goal against Real Madrid
Before Real could even consider a fight back, Barca came close to a third on two occasions. The first saw Olmo nearly pick out Ferran with a cut back in the box with Real chasing shadows. The over-hit pass was just out of reach for the former Manchester City forward.
Rashford missed the chance to notch a second when he breezed past Fran Garcia to reach a through ball that had him one-on-one with Courtois, the England international dragged the effort wide as Real survived the onslaught.
The second half saw Real step up their efforts with Jude Bellingham at the heart of their improved display. The England midfielder very nearly cut the advantage when he got on the end of Trent Alexander-Arnold’s dinked pass to steer it home. However, the linesman’s flag was immediately raised.
Courtois was called upon to keep out second-half substitute Robert Lewandowski late on, but even an excellent goalkeeper display from the returning Real keeper wouldn’t have been enough to prevent the inevitable champions being coronated.
Mourinho: No contact over Real job
For Real it is a second straight season without a major honour, after also being dumped out of the Champions League and Copa del Rey. Interim boss Arbeloa is expected to depart in the summer and rumours linking former Los Blancos boss Jose Mourinho are continuing to swirl.
Reacting to the rumours, current Benfica head coach, Mourinho, said:
“I’ve had no contact with Real Madrid, none at all, and I won’t have any until after the final league match against Estoril either.
“Then there’s a one-week window, during which I’ll be free to speak to whoever I feel I should speak to, but all the stories that have been circulating – demands, meetings – are all speculation.”
