Barcelona's Lionel Messi, center, vies for the ball with Real Madrid's goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, left, and Real Madrid's Sergio Ramos, right, during a Spanish La Liga soccer match between Barcelona and Real Madrid at Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2019. AP
Real Madrid outplayed Barcelona for large parts of Wednesday’s top-of-the-table La Liga clash but were unable to make their dominance count and the ‘Clasico’ ended goalless to leave the Catalans top of the standings on goal difference.
Both sides had shots cleared off the goalline while Real’s Gareth Bale did manage to put the ball in the net after the interval but his strike was narrowly ruled out for offside and the fixture ended scoreless for the first time since November 2002.
The match was rescheduled from Oct. 26 due to the political turmoil that gripped Catalonia after separatist leaders were given lengthy jail sentences two months ago and it kicked off amid a protest in favour of independence near the stadium.
The draw left Barca top with 36 points after 17 games, with Real also on 36, five clear of third-placed Sevilla.
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