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Barcelona secured a narrow 1-0 win over arch-rivals Real Madrid in the El Clasico in Las Vegas on Saturday, 23 July. Despite the game only being a pre-season friendly, it caught the eye of the footballing fraternity worldwide.
In the first El Clasico of the new season, the Catalan giants came out victorious thanks to a solitary goal scored by new signing Raphinha. The Brazilian winger arrived from Leeds United for a deal worth €68 million and has since made an instant impact on Xavi's side.
Raphinha opened the scoring in the 27th minute following an error from Real Madrid defender Eder Militao. Barcelona pressed high up the pitch, resulting in Militao giving the ball away to the Brazilian through a half-hearted clearance. The 25-year-old attacker then went on to score an incredible goal from outside the box, giving Thibaut Courtois no chance of producing a save.
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The Catalan giants had an excellent game overall. They denied Los Blancos from having a single shot on target.
Football fans took to Twitter to react to the showpiece game of the pre-season so far. Here are a few tweets in that regard:
The El Clasico contested under lights in Las Vegas saw Robert Lewandowski make his Barcelona debut following his move from Bayern Munich for a deal worth €50 million.
It is worth mentioning that the game in Vegas was Real Madrid's first pre-season game of the summer. Los Blancos boss Carlo Ancelotti decided to start both of his signings, Antonio Rudiger and Aurelien Tchouameni, against their rivals. Rudiger, however, started the game as a left-back.
Real Madrid will now take on Mexican side Club America on July 26 before ending their American tour with a game against Juventus on July 30.
Barcelona, meanwhile, will also face the Old Lady on July 26 before wrapping up their tour of the US with a game against the New York Red Bulls.
When do Barcelona and Real Madrid face one another in La Liga next season?
The first official El Clasico of the season will be played on matchday nine at the Santiago Bernabeu on 16 October 2022. The return fixture will be played at Camp Nou on 19 March 2023 during matchday 26.
It is worth mentioning that there is a possibility that the two teams could face each other on more than two occasions next season. The arch-rivals could also face one another in the Supercopa de Espana or in the Copa del Rey.
