Català

Salta el menu

Language menu


All Barça’s football


Top of page

Content

Link to related content

Match

Marcador del partit

  • Date: Sunday, 20 May
  • Competition: ???label.competicio0???
  • Stadium: Vicente Calderón, Madrid

Resultat:

  • At.Madrid: 0
  • FC Barcelona: 6

Match report

Match Report

Goals

0-1 Messi (min.38)
0-2 Zambrotta (min. 40)
0-3 Eto'o (min.45)
0-4 Ronaldinho (min.57)
0-5 Messi (min.80)
0-6 Iniesta (min.90)

The response of Champions (0-6)

Jordi Clos

Barça thrashed Atletico 0-6 in a terrific display of attacking football on Sunday night in Madrid. Messi (twice), Zambrotta, Eto’o, Ronaldinho and Iniesta were all on target in a historic triumph.

On the night nothing was able to stop Barça. The poor record in recent years at the Calderon and the hot scoring streak of Fernando Torres against Barça were all forgotten as Barça impressively secured the three points. Rikjaard’s team knew before kick-off that the needed to win to keep up the pressure at the top of the table following the respective victories of Real Madrid and Sevilla earlier in the day.

Barça took the initiative early on in a game that was played on a heavy pitch due to the rain that fell in Madrid on Sunday. Atletico were well disciplined in defence and were happy to hit Barça on the counter attack. Galletti had the first chance for the home side after 26 minutes but his shot went narrowly wide.

Barça avalanche 0-3

The game changed radically shortly before the break. Firstly, Ronaldinho struck a post with a free-kick from the edge of the box in the 33rd minute, then Messi almost found the net from the rebound only for Pichu to block his goalbound effort. However Barça did not have to wait much longer for the breakthrough. It came in the 38th minute when Messi exchanged passes with Eto’o before firing into the bottom corner of the net. Before Athletico had a chance to recover Barça added a second. Goalkeeper Pichu was caught in no man’s land when Zambrotta lifted the ball over his head into the empty net. The game was effectively killed off on the stroke of half-time when Barça added a third through Eto’o following a sensational move involving Ronaldinho and Deco - although the hapless Athletico keeper was at fault once more.

Work of art and applause in the Calderón

The second half began in the same vein. Messi had a chance to add a fourth shortly after the restart but the increasingly nervous Athletico goalkeeper was able to make the save. In the 57th minute Ronaldinho added his name to the score sheet with a sensational goal following a move involving Xavi, Deco and Samuel Eto’o. The goal sparked applause among the home supporters in the Vicente Calderon

Atletico well beaten

After Ronaldinho’s superb strike Barça began to relax and to enjoy the game. In the 71st minute the home side were reduced to ten following the expulsion of Eller. Messi struck again in the 80th minute to add a fifth with another impressive and cool headed finish past Pichu. Despite the comfortable scoreline Rikjaard’s men keep the pressure on up until full-time as Iniesta rounded off a fantastic night for the champions with a sixth shortly before the final whistle.

The 0-6 final score was a demonstration that this Barça team is determined to fight to the finish to secure a third consecutive league championship. The result leaves Barça in second place on the same points as Real Madrid and allows Rikjaard’s team to go into the final few games of the season full of confidence.


Preview

Deco and Puyol are fine

Deco and Puyol have travelled to Madrid despite minor injury concerns. The Portuguese international is fully recovered from the problems he has been having with his left ankle, while the Barça captain will also be available for selection despite hurting the fifth metatarsal of his left foot in training on Thursday.

The first final

David Puig

FC Barcelona need to go out and beat Atlético Madrid if they are to keep their league title campaign on track. That will mean ending a winless run at the Vicente Calderón that goes back to the 99-00 season.

The unexpected setback last weekend against Betis has not affected the confident mood among Frank Rijkaard’s squad. There are four games still to play, starting on Sunday with Atlético Madrid, and Barça simply cannot afford to make any more mistakes if they are to secure a third consecutive Spanish league title.

web_22.jpgMotta and Giuyl are back: Thiago Motta and Ludovic Giuly are back in the team after missing the game against Betis. Motta has fully recovered from an abscess in his right leg, while the Frenchman returns after being dropped last Sunday. This week the unfortunate players that have not entered the Dutch manager’s plans are Saviola, Ezquerro and Sylvinho, while Márquez, who still has not quite returned to full fitness, also sits out the trip to Madrid.

A difficult road trip: Barça’s games with Atlético Madrid have not exactly gone to plan of late, and Frank Rijkaard has yet to experience a win at the Vicente Calderón, a venue where Barcelona have failed to win since back in the 99-00 season, when they romped home to an emphatic 3-0 victory. But although history may not be on Barça’s side, there is no doubt that there could be no better time than the present for that record to be set straight.

QM3D1810.jpgLooking at Europe: Javier Aguirre’s side also has an awful lot to play for. They are currently sixth in the league with 54 points and well on course for a UEFA Cup berth. However, a poor result against Barça on Sunday would open the door for either Recreativo or Villarreal to put major pressure on the red and whites. But in front of their notoriously passionate fans, Atlético have only lost three times this season, and they know that eight years has been far too long for a team like theirs to have been missing out on European football.



Top of page

Back to top

Related content

  • Real Betis1-1Gimnàstic
  • RCD Mallorca0-1Valencia CF
  • Zaragoza4-3Athletic Club
  • Deportivo1-2Sevilla FC
  • RCD Espanyol1-5Getafe CF
  • Levante UD1-4Osasuna
  • R.Sociedad3-1Celta
  • Villarreal CF2-1Racing
  • Recreativo2-3Real Madrid
  • At.Madrid0-6FC Barcelona

Official sponsors


Copyright - FCBarcelona | Legal Terms | Buy tickets FC Barcelona | This is the FC Barcelona official website

Follow us on: Facebook | Twitter | Youtube | RSS


Back to top
Top of page