MONDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2018 16 Barca humiliate Real Luis Suarez bags Clasico hat-trick in Camp Nou thrashing AFP | Barcelona headed in while a promising Ma- drid free-kick somehow ended arcelona ran riot in the with another Barca sprawl on Clasico yesterday as Luis the counter-attack. The visitors BSuarez scored the hat- were fortunate to be only two trick that will surely spell the down at half-time but the game end of Julen Lopetegui’s spell as was a mirror image after the Real Madrid coach. restart. Barcelona were 5-1 winners Varane had gone off, with a at the Camp Nou, dominant for muscle problem the club said, all-but a 15-minute spell after for Lucas Vazquez, with Nacho half-time when the otherwise moving to centre-back. Vazquez hapless Madrid briefly threat- was key to Madrid’s goal, his ened a comeback. disguised pass allowing to All the failures that have un- pick out Marcelo, who finished derlined their recent problems for his third in three games. under Lopetegui were on show Suddenly, it was Barca mak- here, poor finishing, dreadful ing the mistakes. defending and key players per- headed over, Luka Modric hit forming well below par, let alone the inside of the post and Isco’s their best. finish was blocked after Rafinha Philippe Coutinho scored the ran into trouble. first and the last but Madrid were less transformed in between the game belonged to at the back, where Suarez ac- Suarez, who terrorised Madrid robatically volleyed onto the from start to finish and made post before Alba fired just wide. light of ’s injury-en- As Madrid’s momentum faded, forced absence. Suarez landed the knock-out For Lopetegui, it is now one blow. win in six games, as Madrid fall Sergi Roberto chipped a cross seven points behind Barcelo- into the box but the ball had na, who return to the top of the neither the pace nor the angle table. to be headed in easily. Suarez, This defeat was reminiscent of however, generated both himself the 4-0 thrashing that spelt the to leave Courtois stranded. end of Rafael Benitez’s time in If that was a masterclass in ad- charge two years ago but while aptation, his third was a demon- Benitez survived two more Barcelona’s Uruguayan forward Luis Suarez (L) scores a goal stration of finesse. Ramos was months, Lopetegui may not last pushed off the ball by Sergi Rob- the week. was allowed for a goal in a La Liga Clasico in parried away by Courtois. erto, who freed Suarez. Suarez Much was made of this being time to wait for Jordi Alba’s 13 seasons. Still, Barca needed the help feathered the ball over Courtois the first Clasico without either zooming run past both Gareth of VAR for the second. Suarez for his hat-trick. Messi or in Bale and Nacho, with the full- Lopetegui motionless 5 was too quick to the ball at the Madrid were finished but the 11 years but Suarez’s masterclass back’s touch on the run perfectly On the touchline, Lopetegui Barcelona score 5 goals near post and Varane bundled humiliation was not over yet will mean this contest lives long pushed into the area. stood motionless. Varane and were dominant for him over. It was a clear penalty, as Ousmane Dembele crossed in the memory. Suarez rushed past but clapped but his team-mates all-but a 15-minute spell which Suarez converted for his for Vidal to head home a fifth. Madrid looked dazed in pos- Coutinho held his ground by the looked shell-shocked. Sergio after half-time when the seventh goal in 11 games against Suarez could even have had a session and dizzy out of it as penalty spot, where Alba found Ramos thrashed a pass across his otherwise hapless Madrid these opponents. His eighth and fourth in injury-time but Cour- Barca repeatedly opened them him with the cut-back. It was own box to Nacho, who hacked briefly threatened a ninth were still to come. tois saved. Five was more than up down the left early on. the move’s 30th pass, the most it to the feet of Arthur, his shot comeback Gerard Pique should have enough.

English United ease pressure on boss, Chelsea cruise Burnley 0 4 Chelsea AFP | London received jeers for his laboured to within two points of Liver- had raised hopes of an unex- Crystal Palace 2 2 Arsenal run-up to the spot-kick. pool at the top of the table de- pected title challenge from Ar- Manchester United 2 1 Everton anchester United eased Pogba made some amends spite the absence of top scorer senal. Mthe pressure on manager as it was from his pass Antho- with a back injury. However, their defensive Scottish League Cup Jose Mourinho by seeing off ny Martial curled home a fine Alvaro Morata, Ross Bark- deficiencies were shown up in Everton 2-1 at yes- second four minutes into the ley, Willian and Ruben Lof - rash challenges by Shkodran Heart of Midlothian 0 3 Celtic terday, as Chelsea leapfrogged second half. tus-Cheek were all on target to Mustafi and Granit Xhaka to Aberdeen 0 0 Rangers Manchester City into second However, another sloppy pass ease concerns over who could give Milivojevic the chance to with a 4-0 thrashing of Burnley. from Pogba helped get Everton carry the goalscoring burden earn Palace a share of the spoils. Italian Arsenal’s 11-game winning back in the game as Gylfi Sig- without the Belgian for Maur- In between the Serbian’s run was finally ended, though, urdsson scored from the pen- izio Sarri’s side. spot-kicks, a brilliant Xhaka Sassuolo 2 2 as two Luka Milivojevic pen- alty spot after Chris Smalling The Italian remains unbeaten free-kick and Pierre-Emerick Cagliari 2 1 Chievo alties earned Crystal Palace a chopped down Richarlison. since taking charge at Stamford Aubameyang’s controversial much-needed point in a 2-2 Bridge, and Sarri was also happy ninth goal of the season, after he Genoa 2 2 Udinese draw at Selhurst Park. Chelsea fill Hazard void with a better defensive display pounced on a knockdown from SPAL 0 3 Frosinone yesterday’s action on the Chelsea enjoyed a far more than in recent weeks. Alexandre Lacazette’s hand, had Milan 2 2 Sampdoria field was overshadowed by the comfortable afternoon to close The Gunners’ winning run put Arsenal in front. Napoli v. Roma ongoing investigation into the helicopter crash on Saturday evening that is feared to have German Bundesliga killed Leicester City owner Vi- 1. FC Nürnberg 1 1 Eintracht Frankfurt chai Srivaddhanaprabha. A minute’s reflection both RB Leipzig 0 0 FC Schalke 04 in honour of Remembrance SV Werder Bremen 0 3 Bayer 04 Leverkusen yesterday and the crash was held before kick-off at all three Spanish La Liga matches. United’s fifth defeat of the season to Juventus in the Getafe 2 0 Real Betis Champions League on Tuesday Barcelona 5 1 Real Madrid had put Mourinho’s position in Alaves 0 1 Villarreal peril once more. But he got the slice of luck Sevilla v. Huesca he needed when Paul Pogba’s penalty was saved by England French number one Jordan Pickford, but rolled kindly back into the Rennes 0 2 Reims Frenchman’s path to slot home Bordeaux 0 1 Nice the opener. Marseille v. Paris Saint-Germain The United fans still weren’t Manchester United’s French Paul Pogba has this penalty saved (but it rebounds back to him to score the *Scores as of closing happy with Pogba, though, as he opening goal)