Soccer rivalries are a staple of the game, especially when the two teams involved are the best the country has to offer. Rivalries or Derbies can stem from various reasons while the most spiced up and heated rivalries come from the supporter’s political and ideological differences. The rivalry between the two biggest clubs in Spain is known as ‘El Classico’
On one hand, there are the record champions Real Madrid, the capital of Spain, while the other side consists of Barcelona, the flagbearer of Catalonia.
Needless to say, this rivalry was on another level in the early 2010s when both Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho were at the helm of the two biggest clubs. It was the first Clasicco for players like Ozil, Khedira, and even manager Jose Mourinho.
Heading on to the match, Real Madrid was unbeaten in the League and had 5 wins in a row but Camp Nou had something else in mind.
A demolition years in the making as the team from Catalonia thrashed the Golden Boys of Spanish Capital 5 goals to nil cementing their place as the best club in Spain, having won the league the following year. It also marked the first time in history that a team has won 5 Clasico’s in a row.
Messi walking off the pitch after destroying Madrid 5-0 pic.twitter.com/7hy5e1vs3l https://t.co/LqD1dUCjsT
— ً (@cfcbarny) October 17, 2023
The match took place on 30th November and players like Pedro, Xavi, David Villa and Jeffren Suarez were on the scoresheet.
One of the most iconic moments in El Clasico history came in this match as Lionel Messi walked off the field after a Sergio Ramos tackle looking at the crowd who were chanting his name in unison as the camera took a glance at the scoreboard and a distraught Mourinho.
Bookings and Red Cards issued during the El Classico
Needless to say, after David Villa’s 2 goals in quick succession, tackles started flying in and a total of 13 yellow cards were shown to members of both teams.
Mourinho and his staff also got carded even though Mourinho could have gotten sent off early into the match as he whispered into Pep Guardiola’s year as he was about to substitute Zlatan Ibrahimovic on the pitch.
Sergio Ramos in typical Sergio Ramos fashion got sent off towards the end of the match after a horrifying tackle on Lionel Messi and the defender had already lost his cool as can be seen from the way he exited the pitch.
Even Ronaldo pushed Guardiola during a throw-in while Carvalho elbowed Messi but ironically it was Messi who got shown the yellow card.
Important matches Sergio Ramos
Got sent off “red card”
2010/2011 Barcelona vs real 5:0
2011/2012 Barcelona vs real 2:2
2013/2014 Barcelona vs real 4:3
2015/2016 Barcelona vs real 1:2
206/2017 Barcelona vs real 3:2Puyol > Ramos pic.twitter.com/iFYipFXefR
— Shafi🇶🇦#laportahater (@shafibarca) January 15, 2022
A post-match brawl took place and match officials did their best to contain it. One of the Madrid staff said that they were ‘lucky’ the match didn’t take place at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Post-match interviews
Jose Mourinho in the post-match interview said it was the worst match of his career as the way Madrid played was very bad. He also said ‘It is a historically bad result for us. It is not a humiliation but I am very disappointed. It is sad for us”.
That same season Barcelona went on to win the Champions League to which Mourinho responded by saying “This season Barcelona was closer to god than us”
José Mourinho explaining how he compensated the Real Madrid fans of the 5-0 El Classico defeat by winning the Copa Del Rey final against Barcelona and the La Liga at the Camp Nou. pic.twitter.com/pD3Q2y4LZ4
— IM🇵🇹 (@Iconic_Mourinho) February 10, 2023
Mascherano reflected on the match saying it was one of his favorite moments in a Barca shirt even though he was left on the bench. Pep Guardiola was immensely happy with the performance as he could not name just one, player of the match that day.
Gerard Pique said that the Spanish Media pissed them off as since the start of the season all they could hear about was Jose Mourinho and not about Spain’s World Cup victory, Mourinho’s night was further ruined by the ‘Come out of the dugout Jose‘ chants.
The 5-0 clasico is still a result that brings trauma to mind of the Real Madrid and happiness to Barcelona fans. By far one of the most iconic matches with so many factors at play. It’s almost impossible to replicate the situation the two teams were in at that time.