Barcelona vs Real Madrid: 5 Talking Points & Tactical Analysis of El Clasico

#4 Valverde's tactical substitutions see Barcelona put game out of reach

Ousmane Dembele's introduction helped Luis Suarez complete his hat-trick

Seeing Real Madrid dominating the game and Barcelona ineffective in attack, Valverde made two crucial substitutions to wrest back control. Rafinha, who was so effective against Inter, had just one shot on goal and was taken off for Nelson Semedo. This saw Valverde move Sergi Roberto to the right wing while Semedo took his place at right-back.

Five minutes later, Philippe Coutinho was also taken off for Ousmane Dembele because the Brazilian was a mere passenger when Real attacked time and again. This substitution was the key as Dembele was tasked with carrying the ball forward and he made an immediate impact.

The 21-year-old Frenchman burst forward on a counter-attack and found Roberto on the right. Their hard-work was crucial with Roberto playing a perfect lob for Suarez to head home from 14 yards out!

Roberto's attacking instincts also saw him pounce on a Ramos error as the centre-back slipped. All he had to do was release Suarez into space to go one-on-one with Courtois. Once the Belgian keeper was committed to coming off his line, the Uruguayan striker chipped it over him to complete his hat-trick.

Even his third substitution Arturo Vidal helped himself to a goal in the dying stages of the game with no defender in sight as he headed home a cross from Dembele.