Real Madrid Defeat Barcelona 2-1 in El Clasico, Firmly Top of La Liga 2025/2026

Liputan6.com, Jakarta Real Madrid secured a crucial 2-1 victory in El Clásico against FC Barcelona.

This intense match took place on Sunday, October 26, 2025 at Los Blancos' home ground, the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, Madrid.

This victory solidified Real Madrid's position at the top of the 2025/2026 La Liga standings, thanks to two goals from Kylian Mbappé and Jude Bellingham.

In the 'El Clasico' match, Barcelona only managed a single goal in response through Fermin Lopez.

This match was certainly not without drama and controversy.

🏁 FT: @RealMadridEN 2-1 @FCBarcelona ⚽️ 22' @KMbappe⚽️ 38' Fermín⚽️ 43' @BellinghamJude👉 @emirates pic.twitter.com/W10aJmDeLP

— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) October 26, 2025

From the first whistle, Real Madrid immediately displayed high aggression in attacking Barcelona's defense.

French striker Kylian Mbappé had a quick goal in the 12th minute, but the referee disallowed it after a VAR review indicated an offside position.

The legitimate opening goal finally came in the 22nd minute when Jude Bellingham delivered a perfect through ball that Kylian Mbappé calmly finished into the right corner of the net, making it 1-0 to Real Madrid.

Barcelona is applying counter-pressure to the Madrid defense and paid off in the 38th minute when Fermin Lopez successfully capitalized on a Marcus Rashford cutback to beat goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, leveling the score at 1-1.

However, Real Madrid regained the lead again before halftime.

Starting from an Eder Militao pass, Jude Bellingham beat goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny and gave Madrid a 2-1 lead at halftime.

Carvajal, Vini Jr & co vs Lamine Yamal after El Clásico: “You speak too much. Speak now”. 🚨@defcentral 🎥 pic.twitter.com/BSgOX9hdws

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) October 26, 2025

In the second half, Real Madrid had a golden opportunity to increase their lead after the referee pointed to the penalty spot for Eric Garcia's handball in the penalty area.

However, Kylian Mbappé's penalty kick, which was heading to the left of the goal, was brilliantly saved by Barcelona goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny.

Drama happened when Barcelona midfielder Pedri received a second yellow card for a hard tackle on Tchouameni, which forced him to leave the field.

This incident sparked a commotion in the technical area, even involving substitutes Vinicius Jr. and Raphinha, who got involved in the argument.

Another interesting moment was when Vinicius Jr. showed clear disappointment in the 72nd minute when Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso substituted him for Rodrygo Goes.

Despite this, Real Madrid managed to maintain their 2-1 lead until the final whistle in the 90+12 minute.

FC Barcelona dominated possession with 68 percent of the ball throughout the match while Real Madrid played a more effective and incisive game.

Los Blancos recorded 23 shots, with 10 of them on target.

This victory cemented Real Madrid's position at the top of the 2025/2026 La Liga standings with a total of 27 points and five points ahead of second-placed Barcelona.

This El Clasico match also marked a positive debut for Xabi Alonso as Real Madrid coach in a match of this magnitude.

The former Madrid player successfully led Dani Carvajal and his teammates to a crucial victory in his first match against Barcelona as manager.