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Real Madrid 2-3 Barcelona: Five talking points from gripping El Clasico at the Bernabeu

MADRID, SPAIN - APRIL 23:  Lionel Messi of Barcelona (C) celebrates as he scores their first and equalising goal with team mates during the La Liga match b

Magical Lionel Messi ignites La Liga title race, while Sergio Ramos' ill-discipline proves costly - five key talking points from an enthralling Clasico encounter at the Bernabeu.

The fixture rarely disappoints, but nobody could have foreseen the incredible drama that unfolded in the Spanish capital as Barcelona came out 3-2 winners in the latest El Clasico blockbuster.

From the magic of Messi, Ramos' moment of madness, Gareth Bale's early departure, Casemiro's fortune to a disappointing Paco Alcacer; here are five talking points from the rip-roaring encounter at the Bernabeu.

Messi magic ignites title race

Barcelona's Argentinian forward Lionel Messi celebrates Barcelona's third goal during the Spanish league football match Real Madrid CF vs FC Barcelona at t
Image: Messi picked the perfect time to score his 500th Barca goal

Only he would pick the last minute of a potentially title-defining Clasico thriller to score his 500th Barcelona goal and win the game for his side. There are no superlatives left for Messi's majesty, the English language just isn't wide reaching enough.

His first goal was right out of the top drawer to cancel out Casemiro's opener as he sashayed past Dani Carvajal, while his finish in the dying moments was pinpoint in the extreme. His celebration in front of a vitriolic Bernabeu crowd showed what it meant to him and the title race.

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Lionel Messi brought up his 500th goal for Barcelona in spectacular fashion scoring the winner in the El Clasico with the last kick off the match.

Having seemed out of it after defeat at Malaga two weeks ago, Barca are now top of the table by virtue of a better head-to-head record over Real. The two rivals are on the same amount of points, although Los Blancos have played one game fewer.

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"He [Messi] saw Ronaldo score his 100th goal in the Champions League and thought 'I have to respond'," Thierry Henry said in the Sky Sports studio. "Ronaldo has helped Messi get better and Messi has helped Ronaldo get better, and we saw it again. I do not understand why people still doubt this man. I mean, 500 goals." Quite.

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After scoring his 500th goal for Barcelona we take a look back at some of Lionel Messi's greatest moments in a Barca shirt.

Ramos ill-discipline strike again

Sergio Ramos walks past Messi  as he is sent off
Image: Sergio Ramos walks past Messi as he is sent off

We have been here before, in this fixture, with the same referee. Initially, it looked as though Ramos had been harshly dismissed, but referee Hernandez Hernandez had every right to give Ramos his 22nd career red, after replays showed just how reckless his challenge on Messi was.

It was only Ramos' second foul of the game, but there can be no excuses for leaving the ground with two feet like that. The Spain international was dismissed at the Nou Camp last April, but Cristiano Ronaldo's late winner got him off the hook. Ramos had no such luck this time around.

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Real Madrid's Sergio Ramos was shown a straight red card for this two-footed lunge on Barcelona's Lionel Messi.

"You could see clearly [that it was a red card]," Henry added. "He was just lucky that it didn't properly connect with Messi, because that would have been really bad."

Ramos left the field protesting his innocence, gesturing to Gerard Pique that the Barca defender had played a part in his dismissal, but the fiery 31-year-old needs to look a little closer to home when looking for someone to blame.

Bale rushed back? Should Asensio have started?

Zinedine Zidane said Gareth Bale has apologised for his red card against Las Palmas
Image: Gareth Bale didn't last long on his return to the side

You need your big hitters in the big games, and Bale's inclusion for Real provided them with a real boost ahead of the crucial Clasico encounter.

However, 39 minutes in, after 19 touches, no key passes and just one shot on target, Bale limped off with what appears to be a recurrence of his problematic ankle injury that plagued his progress earlier in the season.

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Highlights of the El Clasico match between Real Madrid and Barcelona.

It was ostensibly clear that the Wales international wasn't 100 per cent fit, and with two players in Isco and fledgling Marco Asensio chomping at the bit for a piece of the action, as well as both being in fine form, the decision to gamble on Bale's fitness, at such a crucial stage of the season seems somewhat foolish now.

Asensio did enter the fray as Bale's replacement, creating three chances and looking lively on the counter. A starting berth did certainly not look beyond him.

Casemiro fortunate to stay on the pitch?

MADRID, SPAIN - APRIL 23:  Luis Suarez of Barcelona takes on Casemiro and Sergio Ramos of Real Madrid during the La Liga match between Real Madrid CF and F
Image: Casemiro (right) was fortunate to stay on the pitch

Not one to hold back whenever there is even a hint of a 50:50 in the air, Casemiro can count himself very fortunate indeed to have completed the first half, never mind 70 minutes before being substituted. His challenge on Messi early on was reckless in the extreme, before fouling the same man just before the interval, showing very little intention of winning the ball, but the referee waved off vociferous Barca calls for a second yellow.

"It always seems like the same thing with him," Henry said. "He always goes in hard into challenges. I don't know how he stayed on the field against Bayern Munich the other day, but he is clearly stopping Leo Messi and it should be a second yellow."

Nonetheless, the Brazil international was free to marshal the midfield until he was replaced. The look he gave Messi after fouling the Barca metronome said it all. A lucky boy.

Alcacer no worthy Neymar deputy

Barcelona's forward Paco Alcacer reacts after missing a goal opportunity during the Spanish Copa del Rey (King's Cup) round of 32 second leg football match
Image: Paco Alcacer endured another frustrating match

The fact that Barcelona moved heaven and earth to get Neymar permission to play in the Clasico says it all about what Luis Enrique and his staff think of their potential replacements. Going to the Court of Arbitration for Sport cannot have done the Brazil superstar's deputy Alcacer any good, and his inept showing would have had the same psychological effect.

It hasn't really happened for the former Valencia hitman in Catalonia. Five goals is not the return the Nou Camp expected from the €30m arrival, but all would have been forgiven if he had netted at a crucial time in the Spanish capital on Sunday.

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The chance came in 56th minute after a lovely flick from Ivan Rakitic picked him out, but the 23-year-old showed absolutely no confidence as he poked it towards goal. Had much more time to pick his spot.

Alcacer was hauled off with 20 minutes to go, having made just 19 touches and had one shot at goal. The Barca legal team will be on the phone to CAS in the morning, that's for sure.

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