Referee who sent Cristiano Ronaldo off in El Clasico appointed as official for Barcelona vs Real Madrid

The Spanish Football Federation has appointed Ricardo De Burgos Bengoetxea as the match official for Sunday’s (March 19) La Liga clash between Real Madrid and Barcelona. The Spanish referee infamously sent then-Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo off in the Supercopa de Espana against Barcelona in 2017.

Real Madrid and Barcelona are currently the two undisputed contenders for the 2022-23 La Liga title. The Blaugrana currently have a nine-point lead over their sternest rivals at the top of the La Liga table after 25 rounds of fixtures. A win on Sunday would practically send Barcelona out of Real Madrid’s reach, making it a do-or-die encounter for the All-Whites.

Carlo Ancelotti’s side would have preferred to have a friendly face officiating this weekend’s El Clasico, but that has not turned out to be the case. The assigned referee, De Burgos Bengoetxea, has a sketchy record against Los Merengues.

De Burgos Bengoetxea curiously sent Cristiano Ronaldo off in the first leg of the 2017 Supercopa de Espana. He showed the Portuguese superstar a second yellow for an alleged dive inside the Barcelona box. Cristiano Ronaldo’s first yellow, however, was a routine one, as he received it after taking off his shirt while celebrating his goal.

De Burgos Bengoetxea also officiated the Supercopa de Espana final between Real Madrid and Barcelona in Saudi Arabia in February. Xavi's men secured a comfortable 3-1 victory in that game.

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Real Madrid skipper Karim Benzema reveals how he helped Eduardo Camavinga orchestrate match-winning goal against Liverpool

Real Madrid took on Liverpool in the second leg of their Champions League Round of 16 clash on Wednesday night (March 15).

Following a number of misses, Los Merengues broke the deadlock in the 78th minute, courtesy of a Karim Benzema tap-in. Carlo Ancelotti’s team secured a 1-0 win in the return leg and qualified for the quarter-finals with a 6-2 aggregate victory.

Eduardo Camavinga was the architect behind Benzema’s goal, with him playing the Frenchman in space with a pass between two centre-backs, Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate. Madrid initially lost the ball under challenge from Van Dijk, but it fell to Vinicius Junior who fed it back for Benzema to score.

In a post-match press conference, Benzema revealed how he helped Camavinga spot the opening. The 2022 Ballon d’Or winner said:

“I told Camavinga that the two Liverpool centre-backs open up a lot.

"I told him small details, as I know that the two Liverpool centre-backs play wide open, there is an opportunity in the centre and we did that in the goal. He is a young player but he has a lot of talent and we are happy with him.”

The goal took Benzema's tally to 19 for the season, in only 28 matches. His decisive goal won him the Man of the Match award on Wednesday.