Madrid, April 11: Keeping Lionel Messi in check again in what could turn out to be his last Spanish league clásico, Real Madrid continued the impressive run which has put it at the heart of the title race.
Four days after beating Liverpool in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals, Madrid defeated Barcelona 2-1 on Saturday to return to the top in Spain.
The victory in pouring rain in the Spanish capital left Madrid tied on points with Atlético Madrid, which on Sunday can return to the top when it visits sixth-place Real Betis.
Madrid is ahead of its city rival on the head-to-head tiebreaker. Barcelona, which had been unbeaten in 19 straight league games, stayed one point off the lead.
Karim Benzema and Toni Kroos scored first-half goals to give Madrid its sixth straight win in all competitions.
The defending league champions were coming off a 3-1 win over Liverpool in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Barcelona got on the board in the second half with a goal by Óscar Mingueza. It nearly equalized with a shot from young substitute Ilaix Moriba that struck the crossbar in the final play of the match.
This was the first time Madrid has taken the league lead since the early rounds of the competition, and it trailed Atlético by 11 points at one stage.
The result ended Barcelona’s six-match winning streak in the league. It had won nine away matches in a row in the competition.
It was an even start at the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium in Madrid’s training center, but the hosts opened the scoring in the 13th minute with Benzema’s superb flicked shot from close range after a low cross by Lucas Vázquez.
The French striker, who has scored 10 goals in his last nine matches, got in front of Barcelona defender Ronald Araújo and flicked the ball toward the net with his back foot. He hadn’t scored against Barcelona in nine consecutive clásicos.
Kroos added to the lead in the 28th from a free kick following a foul on Vinícius Júnior. Kroos shot from just outside the area and the ball was deflected by American defender Sergiño Dest before going into the net.
Barcelona pulled one back in the 60th with a shot from inside the area by Mingueza after a low cross by Jordi Alba. Madrid played the final minutes a man down after Casemiro was sent off with a second yellow card.
Madrid were without central defenders Raphael Varane and Sergio Ramos. Barcelona was without the injured Gerard Piqué.
Cádiz managed to secure a 1-0 win at Getafe.
Athletic Bilbao was held 0-0 at home by second-to-last Alavés to extend its winless streak to five matches in all competitions.
The winless run of last-place Eibar reached 14 matches after a 1-0 home loss to eighth-place Levante. (AP)
