MADRID -- It was far from a vintage Barcelona performance at the Bernabeu, but it was still sufficient to secure a point in the second Clasico of the season, and with it probably the league title. However, after Cristiano Ronaldo's penalty restored parity on the night -- and gave Real a psychological boost -- ahead of the three upcoming matches between the bitter rivals over the next two weeks, there are plenty of positives for Jose Mourinho to draw from Saturday's 1-1 tie.
Mourinho pays the penalty for pre-match prognostication: Raul Albiol was rather harshly adjudged to have fouled David Villa in the penalty box for Barca, but it was a decision made easier for referee Muniz Alvarez by the Barca forward's theatrical tumble.
A red card was certainly an unfair reflection of the actual contact between defender and forward, but the effect on Real was a serious blow. Mourinho said before the game that he had trained with 10 men as his teams are always reduced by one against Barcelona. After Tottenham had been sent packing from the Bernabeu in the Champions League quarterfinals, the Portuguese said he felt a twinge of sympathy for Harry Redknapp's team and that it would have been a different match if contested between 22 players. In the forthcoming matches against Barcelona, he will surely have the chance to see what Real can do at full strength for a full game.
Ronaldo proves his point against Barcelona: The Portuguese flyer had never scored against Barcelona before this evening's match. With that account settled from the penalty spot after he had rattled a post with a free-kick. Can we expect even bigger things from CR-7 in the Copa del Rey on Wednesday and the Champions league matches?
Everything wasn't OK for Barca:Sacrificing the impish verve of Mesut Ozil, Mourinho drafted Pepe into midfield at Athletic Bilbao last weekend. The ruse worked to good effect Saturday at the Bernabeu, with the German called into action only after Albiol headed down the tunnel. Pedro, Andres Iniesta and Dani Alves were pitted against Marcelo, Xabi Alonso and Pepe, with Angel Di Maria and Ricardo Carvalho covering when needed, making it five against three at times and shutting down Barca's habitual route to goal on the right hand side.With strength in numbers, the right flank became Real's most profitable attacking outlet in the first half. After the calamity of Camp Nou, smothering Barca's midfield was a timely coup for Mourinho.
No surrender: Before the match Nessun Dorma, which translates roughly as "never sleep," blared from the stadium speakers as a panoply of white flags glittered in the floodlights. But far from the tame capitulation displayed in Camp Nou last November -- when even Ronaldo gave up the ghost in the second half -- Real battled and was duly rewarded with a deserved equalizer. Xavi was given little room to maneuver with Alonso and Sami Khedira snapping at his heels, and Real's forwards gamely chased every ball hurled forward, no matter how wayward. The contrast between the first and second Clasicos of the season for Real is black to white.
Real gave no quarter on Saturday. Mourinho's men will fancy their chances of ending Barca's hegemony in the three to come, beginning with Wednesday's King's Cup final on neutral ground at the Mestalla. When Barca revisits Madrid for the Champions League semifinal, it will be on turf Real reclaimed as its own tonight.