Barcelona definitely managed to overcome the frustrations caused by their elimination from the UEFA Champions League and beat Real Madrid 4-3 in spectacular fashion in Catalonia. This took Barça to 82 points and virtually wrapped up the LaLiga title, opening up a seven-point lead with three points remaining.
Right at the start of the match, Barça suffered a setback when Cubarsí miscued the ball and left possession to Mbappé, who dribbled past the goalkeeper and was brought down in the box. The Frenchman struck the ball into the corner and beat Szczesny. And in the 14th minute, Valverde dispossessed Yamal in midfield and Vinícus Júnior played a sensational pass for Mbappé to beat the opposing goalkeeper.
However, the two-goal deficit didn't make Barcelona desperate and the reaction came quickly. Four minutes later, Eric García headed home a corner from the left with great freedom and Barça's first goal. Then, with a lot of pressure on the opposition's backline, Ferrán Torres received the ball from Pedri and the ball reached Lamine Yamal, who scored another great goal this season.
Barcelona's comeback came just two minutes later when Pedri recovered the ball well in the center circle for Raphinha to leave his markers behind and hit a low cross. Before the break, Lucas Vázquez failed badly again and the Brazilian regained possession to tabulate with Ferrán Torres and hit the ball into the corner to extend the lead.
With many changes in the two line-ups, Real Madrid managed to launch themselves into attack and put on a respectable display, accumulating chances until Mbappé scored his hat-trick in the 69th minute, when he received another sensational pass from VInícius Júnior at speed and finished. Before the final whistle, Real went on the attack and Mbappé even scored a fourth, but he was ruled offside and the goal was disallowed. Fermín López also scored Barça's fifth and it was disallowed, but the huge celebration was enjoyed when the referee brought the match to a close.
A forgettable end to the season for Carlo Ancelotti
Real Madrid could mathematically lose the LaLiga title if they fail to beat Mallorca on Wednesday or if Barcelona beat Espanyol the day after, but in terms of morale and spirit, Carlo Ancelotti's farewell at the helm of the madridista team couldn't be more melancholy.