Barcelona, May 12 (H.S.): In a spectacular 4-3 victory, Barcelona defeated Real Madrid in the El Clasico match played on Sunday in La Liga, taking a strong step towards securing the title. With this win, Barcelona has established a seven-point lead over Madrid in the table and now has only three matches left.

Kylian Mbappe delivered a stellar performance for Real Madrid, scoring a hat-trick. However, two goals from Rafinha and one each from Lamine Yamal and Eric Garcia turned the match in favor of Barcelona. After being eliminated from the Champions League, this match was a ‘do or die’ situation for Barcelona, but coach Hansi Flick’s team made a remarkable comeback, registering a victory in the fourth El Clasico.

Real Madrid had a strong start, with Mbappe scoring from a penalty in the fourth minute to give the team an early advantage. The penalty was awarded after goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny fouled Mbappe, although Barcelona had called for an offside.

In the 14th minute, Mbappe scored his second goal, extending Madrid’s lead to 2-0. This was his 26th league goal, allowing him to surpass Robert Lewandowski as the top scorer.

Madrid’s lead did not last long. Just two minutes later, Rafinha scored a goal, and in the closing moments of the first half, he also stole the ball from Lucas Vazquez to net his second goal. Lamine Yamal showcased excellent play in the match as well. He scored one goal and provided a superb cross to Rafinha on a header that unfortunately did not result in a goal.

In the second half, Mbappe completed his hat-trick with a third goal assisted by Vinicius Junior, but Barcelona’s defense and midfield made sure there were no significant errors thereafter. Victor Munoz had a chance to equalize at the end, but he shot the ball over the bar.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar