FCBARCELONA.CAT

08.03.2007 11:50

The advantage of being ahead

Barça have not lost any of their nine last meetings with Real Madrid when they have been the side highest in the league table. The record is seven Barça wins and two draws.

It seems that when Madrid come to the Camp Nou, Barça have always performed better when they are better positioned in the league table. And in seven of those cases, Barcelona have gone on to win the league title. And should Barcelona win on Saturday, they will put no fewer than eight points between them and their historic rivals.

5-0

The game that is remembered most fondly in the Catalan capital is the famous 5-0 win of 93-94 when Johan Cruyff was in charge. Barça were second to Deportivo La Coruña at the time, with Real Madrid two points behind them. The highlight of that unforgettable evening was Romario’s splendid hat trick.

More thrashings

Three of those nine games have ended in 3-0 wins for Barcelona. Those games were in the 97-98, 98-99 and 04-05 seasons, and each time Barça went on to conquer the title, twice under Louis Van Gaal and once again under Frank Rijkaard.

Two draws

The only times that Barça failed to beat Madrid in any of these games were in
99-00 and 05-06. The former ended 2-2, with the Barça goals being supplied by Rivaldo and Figo, with Raul answering with a brace for Real Madrid. Last season also ended even, with Ronaldinho opening the scoring for the home side, but his Brazilian compatriot Ronaldo replying a few minutes later for the whites.

Last defeat in 83-84

The last time Barcelona led Real Madrid but lost at home to them in the league was way back in the 83-84 season, 23 years ago! Barça were coached then by César Luis Menotti and lost 2-1, with Quni’s goal ultimately counting for nothing.