Messi’s hat trick lifts Barcelona
MADRID — Lionel Messi scored a hat trick to give Barcelona a 4-3 win at 10-man Real Madrid in an electrifying and contentious “clasico” match that kept the three-way Spanish league title race wide open.
The result means Atletico Madrid now tops the table, with Madrid level on points in second and Barcelona a point behind in third with nine games remaining as the title race shapes up to be the closest in years.
In a game that saw three penalties, a red card and a host of missed chances, Andres Iniesta set the tone by rocketing home an early opener, only for Karim Benzema’s brace to put the hosts ahead by the 24th.
The teams went into the break level at 2-2 after Messi slotted in an equalizer, only for Cristiano Ronaldo to re-establish Madrid’s lead with a 55thminute penalty.
But Messi scored a pair of penalties after that — including the 65thminute equalizer after Sergio Ramos was sent off — to end Madrid’s 31-game unbeaten run stretching back to the last “clasico” in October.
The high pace of play and buzzing atmosphere inside the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium left little doubt this was a “clasico” with much at stake.
Messi spotted Iniesta’s run down the left side seven minutes in and slid a perfect ball clear into the area for him to lift into the top of goal to kickstart the memorable match.
Madrid winger Angel Di Maria troubled right back Dani Alves throughout, especially when he twice set up Benzema with crosses from the left side, with the France striker nodding home the first in the 20th before controlling the second to smash a right-footed volley beyond Victor Valdes. The goalkeeper got a glove to Benzema’s opener but couldn’t keep it out.
Madrid’s defense nodded off when Neymar and Messi’s hopeful combination came to fruition and the Argentina star could equalize before halftime, with Benzema left ruing a number of missed chances that could have given Madrid control. Red Bulls draw Fire BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. — Dax McCarty’s goal in the 21st minute lifted the New York Red Bulls to a 1-1 tie with the Chicago Fire on Sunday.
The deadlock, played in 28 degree temperatures, kept each team winless at 0-1-2 records.
Chicago midfielder Jeff Larentowicz headed Harrison Shipp’s corner kick past goalkeeper Luis Robles from 8 yards out in the sixth minute.
New York tied the game on McCarty’s 13yard shot off a scramble in the 21st minute. McCarty found the ball in a crowd after a corner kick was cleared by the Chicago defense, and beat Sean Johnson with a short rightfooted kick. Spurs, Stoke both win LONDON — A lively Premier League weekend ended with Tottenham producing a stoppage-time winner against Southampton and Stoke coming from behind to easily win at Aston Villa as 10 goals were scored in Sunday’s two games.
Tottenham manager Tim Sherwood launched himself down the touchline pumping his fists after Gylfi Sigurdsson completed a fight back from 2-0 down at home to Southampton to win 3-2.
TENNIS Vandeweghe to face Williams on Monday KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. — American CoCo Vandeweghe earned a shot at Serena Williams in the fourth round of the Sony Open by winning a match that ended at 2:29 a.m. Sunday.
Vandeweghe, a qualifier ranked No. 104, rallied to beat 2011 U.S. Open champion Samantha Stosur 5-7, 7-5, 7-5. The match began shortly before midnight and ended with only a handful of spectators in the stadium.
GOLF Every wins in Bay Hill ORLANDO, Fla. — Matt Every held on to the very end for a 2-under 70 to overcome a four-shot deficit and win his first PGA Tour event Sunday in the Arnold Palmer Invitational.