Wednesday 23 March 2016 16:06, UK
Barcelona delivered a hammer blow in the La Liga title race with a 4-0 thrashing of hosts Real Madrid in El Clasico on Saturday.
A Luis Suarez double and further goals from Neymar and Andres Iniesta completed the rout to put Barcelona six points clear at the top of La Liga.
Here, we pick out five talking points from the match...
Who needs Messi when you have Neymar and Suarez?
Much of the build up to El Clasico centred on whether Lionel Messi would be fit enough to go head-to-head with his great rival Cristiano Ronaldo. In the end, the Barcelona ace started on the bench. But Barcelona's brilliance is built on more than just one man. They have won seven of the nine games he has missed through injury and attacking duo Luis Suarez and Neymar stepped up and delivered once again.
The pair scored 18 goals during Messi's absence and, with him watching from the dugout, added three more to their tally against Real Madrid.
Since signing from Liverpool, Suarez has thrived in the heat of El Clasico battles, scoring three goals and registering one assist in his three match-ups with Real Madrid. His opener after 11 minutes concluded a brilliant 24-pass team move. No goal has been scored in La Liga this season after more passes.
Of course, Messi will play a crucial part if Barcelona are to win trophies this season. But they have shown over a number of weeks - and against their biggest rivals - that they have a team packed with top quality players who are also able to make the difference.
Pressure builds on Benitez
The white hankies were being waved and boos were ringing around the Bernabeu at full-time. He may have only been in charge for 12 games but Real Madrid boss Rafa Benitez is most definitely under pressure.
Real only suffered their first defeat in all competitions last time out against Sevilla. But their style of play under Benitez has come in for criticism and a 4-0 thrashing at the hands of their biggest rivals will amplify the concerns of his critics.
However, Sky Sports' Thierry Henry believes it would be unfair to solely blame Benitez for the defeat. "It was a collective thing," he said. "At the end of the day he's going to maybe take the blame. They ultimately failed as a team today. They didn't play well."
Real fail to match Barca's desire
Real's performance was the particular focus for Henry at both half-time and full-time. The former Barcelona striker was critical of the hosts' application and commitment to stopping Barcelona.
"This type of game is not about the tactics," he said. "At one point you need to bring the desire and the right commitment on the field and the right intensity. It wasn't there at all. You can't play a Clasico like that.
You saw a team on one side. On the other side you saw a group of players playing for themselves and not being a team at the moment.
"People are going to talk about Benitez and the tactics. The tactics come along when both teams' desire and commitment is there and the game is tight. Then the boss will have to trigger one, two or three things to see who is going to be the best boss. But if your team goes out there without the right desire or commitment it becomes really difficult for the coach.
"I'm not trying to find any excuses for Benitez but first and foremost you need to bring the desire on the field. You saw a team today on one side. On the other side you saw a group of players playing for themselves and not being a team at the moment."
Real's main men fail to fire
Cristiano Ronaldo could easily have made his way onto the scoresheet had it not been for two brilliant stops from Claudio Bravo. However, the Real Madrid ace was unable to influence proceedings as he would have liked. He only managed two shots at goal in the entire game and produced just one pass leading to a shooting opportunity.
But, just as Messi isn't Barcelona's only attacking threat, Ronaldo was severely lacking in support from Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema and James Rodriguez. The trio only managed to work Bravo four times between them.
The performance of the latter three players raises questions about whether they were physically ready for the intensity of a Clasico, given they have all been sidelined with injury recently.
Since the start of October Real Madrid have played seven games. Of the 1890 minutes the trio could have racked up, they've managed just 309. Gareth Bale is the only one to have played a full 90 minutes in that time. He did it just once, in Real's 3-2 defeat to Sevilla before the international break. In short, most of Real's key attackers were undercooked.
Barca favourites for the title
Barcelona's victory moves them six points clear of Real at the top of La Liga. It feels like a pivotal moment in the title race. Had Real won on Saturday they could have hit the summit. Instead they seem a long way off, with star names struggling and an under-fire manager.
While Henry feels the result is not absolutely decisive in the title race he does believe the impact of the result will be significant for both teams.
"The perception of La Liga sometimes in other countries is 'it's only Barcelona and Real Madrid'," he said. "I can assure you it's not.
"Barca lost and lost well against Celta Vigo away from home and they lost to Sevilla. They know going away from home and sometimes at home, games are difficult. It's not a title decider but it will play a lot on the mind of Madrid and give Barcelona great momentum."
