Messi score hat trick as Barca beat Real 4-3

Lionel Messi blew the La Liga title race wide
open when the unstoppable Argentina forward
netted a hat-trick in a 4-3 comeback win for the
champions at 10-man Real Madrid in an action-
paced ‘Clasico’ on Sunday.
Chasing a fifth title in six years, defeat for Barca at Real’s
Bernabeu stadium would have all-but killed off their challenge and
they came out swinging and took a seventh-minute lead when
playmaker Andres Iniesta burst clear on the left and lashed the ball
into the roof of the net.
It was fitting start to a game featuring some of the world’s most
expensive and best-paid talent and watched by millions around the
world that also set the stage for one of the most entertaining
encounters between the game’s two richest clubs of recent times.
Real, looking to restore their three-point lead at the top and
undefeated in 31 matches in all competitions, were reeling but hit back
with a Karim Benzema double before Messi’s first, a close-range
snap shot through a crowd of players to make it 2-2 at the break.
Cristiano Ronaldo put Real ahead from the penalty spot 10 minutes
into the second half after he was tripped byDani Alves and the match
turned when home captain Sergio Ramos was sent off for felling
Neymar when he was through on goal in the 63rd.
Messi clipped home the resulting penalty to level at 3-3 and after
some relentless Barca pressure struck the winner from the spot six
minutes from time after Iniesta was knocked to the ground in the
area.
The Real players were furious about both penalty decisions but
Barca played a courageous game as they had promised and
dominated possession, particularly after Ramos was dismissed, and
thoroughly deserved the victory.
With nine games left, Real have 70 points, level with city neighbours
Atletico Madrid, who won 2-0 at bottom side Real Betis in the
earlier kickoff, and one ahead of third-placed Barca.
“It was an emotional match,” Barca fullback Jordi Alba said in an
interview with Spanish television broadcaster canal Plus.
“We started strongly and then fell behind but we reacted well and
managed to get an important win,” added theSpain international.
“The games that remain are like finals for Barcelona, Atletico and
Real Madrid. This victory will give us a big morale boost.”
Ronaldo and Ramos were particularly harsh in their criticism of
referee Alberto Undiano Mallenco, suggesting he should not be
allowed to officiate another ‘Clasico’, but Real coach Carlo Ancelotti
refused to get drawn into the debate.
He urged his players to put Sunday’s reverse behind them and
regroup for a potentially tricky encounter on Wednesday at fifth-
placed Sevilla, who won 2-1 at Osasuna on Sunday.
“We made some small mistakes and that’s why we did not win,”
Ancelotti, in his first season in charge after succeeding Jose
Mourinho, told a news conference.
“We pressured them high up the pitch, we had chances and we are not
happy but not to worry, the league is still open,” the Italian added.
“We fought and played with intensity but we have to forget this
match. Wednesday’s game could be a key match in the season.”

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