Super strike by Suarez sees Barca close on title
LUIS Suarez won the Clasico and possibly La Liga for Barcelona with a second-half strike that leaves his side four points clear of Real Madrid.
It looked like being Cristiano Ronaldo’s night after he turned in Karim Benzema’s backheel to equalise Jeremy Mathieu’s header.
But Suarez, in his first Nou Camp Clasico, had the last word. Dani Alves lofted a pass forward to him 11 minutes into the second half and, in one movement he took it down and sweep it right-footed past Iker Casillas before Real defenders Pepe and Sergio Ramos could close him down.
As usual Ronaldo had arrived at the Nou Camp as public enemy No 1 and when he made his first charge down the left 98,000 Barcelona fans whistled him and roared the Alves interception that brought the attack to an end.
The pace did not let up and Lionel Messi had his first nutmeg victim inside 10 minutes, playing the ball through the legs of Toni Kroos in another Barcelona attack.
Gareth Bale fed Benzema but the Frenchman dragged his cross-shot wide with Real’s next chance.
Suarez was lively at the other end and he fed Neymar only for the Brazilian to fail to keep his feet under pressure from Ramos. Neymar stayed down but Real kept playing despite
appeals to put the ball out and with their next attack Ronaldo hit the bar.
Barca took the lead in the 19th minute when Messi’s freekick was powered in by Mathieu, who timed his run perfectly to get ahead of Ramos.
Real responded with a Ronaldo run and cross that Bale couldn’t reach to finish.
The first half then turned in one frantic minute on the half-hour.
Barcelona should have gone 2-0 up when Neymar somehow fluffed Suarez’s cross- shot straight at Casillas and Barcelona were punished at the other end as Ronaldo scored his 31st league goal of the season after a brilliant flick by Benzema, who had been played in by former Spurs favourite luka Modric.
Chances came at both ends and 11 players were booked as the action heated up.
The killer goal from Suarez came in the 56th minute and it was frantic at the end but Barcelona managed to hang on to leave Real needing a major turnaround in the last 10 games if they are not to go a third season without the title.