Barcelona take slim edge

First leg Thursday Barcelona 3 - 2 Real Madrid

Saturday, August 25, 2012
Messi tussles with Fabio Coentrao on the turf. Net photo.

First legThursdayBarcelona 3 - 2 Real MadridSecond legWednesdayReal Madrid vs BarcelonaMADRID - An error from Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes allowed Real Madrid to grab a late second goal which kept them alive in the Spanish Super Cup, after Barcelona ran out 3-2 winners in Thursday’s first leg.Pedro, Lionel Messi from the penalty spot, and Xavi scored for holders Barca as they stormed back after Cristiano Ronaldo had headed the opener in the 55th minute at the Nou Camp.With five minutes to go, however, Angel Di Maria pressured Valdes in his area as he controlled a backpass, stole the ball off him and scored while Barca’s defenders looked on aghast.Real’s late goal took the shine off Tito Vilanova’s first ‘Clasico’ as coach since he stepped up from assistant to replace Pep Guardiola, but he was sanguine about the error."It’s a team game. Anyone can make a mistake, I don’t give the error any importance,” Vilanova told a news conference.The game had a muted opening, following the pattern of recent clashes, with Barca dominating possession and Real looking to steal the ball and break quickly.The visitors came out stronger in the second half and the match burst into life when Ronaldo powered in a header from Mesut Ozil’s corner, and celebrated by calling for the Nou Camp to go quiet.Pedro offsideAlmost from the restart Javier Mascherano played a ball over the top for Pedro. The Spain forward’s first touch was magnificent as he sped past Fabio Coentrao and fired in the equaliser.Television replays suggested Pedro had started in an offside position, which Real coach Jose Mourinho was quick to pounce on. "I didn’t like Barca’s first goal, it was an error by the touch judge,” he said.The game opened up and Sergio Ramos brought down Andres Iniesta for a penalty in the 70th, and Messi netted from the spot, his 14th goal against Barca’s arch-rivals.Iniesta dribbled past three players and threaded a ball through for Xavi to score the third in the 78th and soon after Casillas denied Messi a fourth for the hosts.That proved to be a decisive moment as the play swung down the other end of the pitch, and Di Maria poached Real’s second.