Real Madrid vs. Barcelona: Winners and Losers from El Clasico
Real Madrid came from behind to beat Barcelona 3-1 in Saturday's Clasico.
Although Neymar put the guests in front after only four minutes, Madrid were back on level terms by half-time thanks to Cristiano Ronaldo's 35th-minute penalty.
Pepe scored what proved to be the winner from a Toni Kroos corner just five minutes after the restart, and Karim Benzema provided a measure of insurance when he rounded out the scoring in the 61st minute.
In the end, Madrid were decisive winners at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, but several individuals came out winners, and losers, at the final whistle as well.
The following is a look at some of them.
Winner: Isco, Who Was El Clasico's Unsung Hero
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He doesn't carry the name cachet of a Cristiano Ronaldo or Karim Benzema, and unlike the pair of them, he didn't find the back of the net against Barcelona on Saturday.
But Isco was El Clasico's unsung hero, and until his 84th-minute withdrawal (to a standing ovation, no less), he did everything from launching incisive counter-attacks to committing himself on the defensive side of the ball.
Shortly after the hour mark, his blazing run downfield allowed Benzema to pot Real Madrid's third goal of the night, and with 10 minutes remaining, he threw himself into a lunging tackle on Ivan Rakitic that won possession back for the hosts.
The Telegraph's Henry Winter singled out the 22-year-old for praise on his Twitter account, and The Times' Tony Barrett was also in awe of the playmaker post-match.
Loser: Gerard Pique, Whose Struggles Continued
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Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has been in and out of the line-up this season, but on Saturday, he was given a starting spot alongside Javier Mascherano.
He ended up having a rather forgettable night.
In the 35th minute, his dragging arm stopped Marcelo's cross and sent Cristiano Ronaldo to the spot for Real Madrid's equaliser.
Then, in the 76th, he was embarrassingly pick-pocketed by Benzema, as the hosts took control of the final passages of play.
In a post-match interview with Spanish newspaper AS, as relayed by Football Espana, the 27-year-old protested the awarding of the first-half penalty, saying he couldn't get his hand out of the way.
He added: "In the first half we were the better team. Neymar scored, [Messi] had a great chance, but then came the penalty."
Winner: Luis Suarez, Who Ended His Four-Month Exile
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It took just four minutes for Luis Suarez to make an impact with Barcelona.
Having moved into an attacking position down the right, the former Liverpool attacker accepted Xavi's pass and played an inch-perfect pass to Neymar, who cut inside Dani Carvajal and beat Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas with a fine finish.
If Suarez was lacking fitness, he didn't much show it, and upon his exit in the 69th minute, he had completed an impressive 90 percent of his passes, according to WhoScored.com, many of which were played in the high-risk area of the attacking third.
Given Pedro's struggles so far this season, the Uruguay international will no doubt be a fixture in manager Luis Enrique's starting line-up going forward.
Winner: Luka Modric, Who Was Well Near Perfect
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Incredibly, Luka Modric didn't misplace a single pass on Saturday.
Sitting deeper than midfield teammates Isco and Toni Kroos, the Croatia international contributed three tackles to the Real Madrid cause and also moved the ball about with mind-boggling efficiency.
Upon his withdrawal in the final minute of normal time, the 29-year-old had completed 100 percent of his passes, per WhoScored.com, all the while allowing his more attack-minded teammates the freedom to move into useful space.
Loser: Lionel Messi, Who Should Have Put Barcelona 2-0 Up
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Barcelona were leading 1-0 at the Bernabeu when the game changed completely.
No, it wasn't Cristiano Ronaldo's equaliser from the penalty spot that served as the watershed moment; rather, it was Lionel Messi's failed attempt in the 23rd minute that should have put his side two goals in front.
Once again it was Luis Suarez doing the providing, and his delivery from the right was quite similar to that which helped Neymar open the scoring.
But on this occasion, Messi couldn't get enough on his finish to lift the ball over a desperate Iker Casillas, who got just a touch of it as he dove to his right.
Overall, Messi took a sub-standard four shots on Saturday and also picked up an early yellow card.
Winner: Karim Benzema, Who Continues to Silence His Critics
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As described by Garreth Nunn of Football Espana, Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema had been subjected to boos and jeers from the stands earlier this season as he battled a goalscoring drought.
There was only applause for the Frenchman on Saturday, however, as he scored the important third goal against archrivals Barcelona and generally troubled the opposing defense with his running off the ball and use of his teammates.
Having also scored against Liverpool in the Champions League during the week, the 26-year-old is suddenly in a rich vein of form that will surely serve to silence the boo-boys.
At least for now.
