Barcelona’s two victories in El Clásico ultimately proved the difference in their La Liga title success last season, so they will know just how damaging Sunday‘s defeat could prove to be.
Despite thumping Olympiacos 6–1 in the Champions League on Tuesday night, there’s no denying that the visitors were heading into the first Clásico of 2025–26 in a difficult moment. The injury list remained lengthy, with no Raphinha in the matchday squad on Sunday, and Hansi Flick’s dismissal late on against Girona meant he was up in the Gods for this weekend’s affair.
Real Madrid, meanwhile, were emboldened by several returning players from injury in time for the crunch clash, and the mood inside the Santiago Bernabéu emitted one of vengeance. The hosts were desperate to get one over their fiercest rivals and lay down a marker, having suffered four defeats in this fixture last season.
And while the scoreline was tight, it flattered Barcelona. Madrid racked up 23 shots and a sky-high expected goals tally of 3.6. It could’ve been a whole lot worse.
Here are three Barça takeaways from their defeat in the Clásico.
Barcelona Need Defender in January
Barcelona weren’t exactly caught off guard by Iñigo Martínez’s decision to move to Al Nassr in the summer, given that the club said he could move on if such a proposal came about.
Limited finances meant a replacement wasn’t sought at the end of the summer window, and while there was perhaps little they could do to bolster their center back depth chart, Martínez’s decision to move on is undoubtedly hurting Barcelona.
Pau Cubarsí is mightily talented and absolutely superb in the buildup phase, but his performance levels have dropped this season in the absence of his experienced partner. Flick has turned to Eric García to partner the teenage defender, having impressed in multiple roles last season.
However, as a partnership, García and Cubarsí lack power. Martínez was no brute, but he was a master of the fundamentals. The new tandem were destined to struggle against a transition-heavy Madrid team with an in-form Mbappé leading the line, and Barça were never able to control the French superstar.
His movement was electric, with García, in particular, overwhelmed by the physical brilliance of Madrid’s No. 9. There’s no doubting that this was a game for Ronald Araújo, who may lack guile in possession, but is a far superior athlete to García and would’ve had a better shot at limiting Madrid’s devastation in transition.
Flick’s distrust in the Uruguayan, however, means an alternate option must be brought in over the winter.
Yamal Succumbs to the Hostilities
Ego is the enemy, young Lamine.
The 18-year-old superstar has every right to be self-assured. Yamal’s meteoric rise over the past two years has seen him garner comparisons to the greatest to ever do it, and some have even suggested that Lionel Messi hadn’t reached Yamal’s heights before escaping his teenage years. Such lofty praise is deserved, and there were plenty who thought he should’ve pipped Ousmané Dembélé to the 2025 Ballon d’Or.
However, his start to 2025–26 has been overshadowed by discourse surrounding his 18th birthday celebrations, a high-profile girlfriend and injuries. It’s fair to say it’s been a relatively slow start.
Despite this, Yamal was in a taunting mood on social media in the buildup to El Clásico, riling up Madrid supporters and, as scenes at the end of Sunday’s game proved, Xabi Alonso’s players. His prematch posts depicting previous successes in this fixture rendered him public enemy number one. A “whistling campaign” was planned by Madridistas, and the noise from the home crowd every time Yamal received possession didn’t help him settle.
The winger got away with an early penalty giveaway, but that incident set the tone. Yamal merely teased playing a starring role here, but could only offer glimpses of his otherworldly talent. A flat Barcelona attack was ignited by Fermín López instead of Yamal, who wasn’t given much room to breathe by Madrid left back Álvaro Carreras.
A disappointing outing for the 18-year-old was compounded by the result, and a couple of the Madrid were keen to dish it out to the teenager at the full-time whistle. “You speak too much. Speak now,” Dani Carvajal and Viní Jr were reported to have said to Yamal during an unseemly melee.
Pedri Dismissal Compounds Misery
Wojciech Szczęsny’s denial of Mbappé from 12 yards ignited Barcelona’s best period of El Clásico, as they were able to combine with precision and ultimately force Madrid into a deeper defensive block.
However, with the Madrid bus parked, Barça entered huff-and-puff territory. They simply ran out of steam and ideas late in the contest, with Thibaut Courtois untested despite the addition of emergency striker Ronald Araújo to the visitors’ attack.
The only event of note during the nine additional minutes of second-half stoppage time was Pedri’s second booking for a lunge on Aurélien Tchouaméni. The Barcelona midfielder will now miss next week’s La Liga game with Elche, who have been Spain’s surprise package so far this term.
A week’s rest is sorely needed, with Raphinha on the comeback trail, and Pedri should benefit from the extra breather, so it isn’t all bad. Flick has multiple potential replacements at his disposal, with Marc Casadó the most likely contender to partner Frenkie de Jong, even if both ended the Clásico at center back.
Pedri has been nothing short of outstanding this calendar year, but Jude Bellingham was the midfield star of this Clásico. His late desperation after a loose touch at the death epitomised Pedri’s imperfect showing, but he’ll be fresh and rejuvenated for the trip to Club Brugge in 10 days.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as 3 Barcelona Takeaways From Disappointing Clasico Defeat.