Luis Suarez scored twice and Neymar added a goal and an assist to lead Barcelona to an emphatic 4-0 win over Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu in the first ”clasico” of the season on Saturday.
Suarez scored in the 11th and 74th minutes, while Neymar netted in the 39th and set up Andres Iniesta’s 53rd-minute goal to hand Madrid its first home loss in 23 Spanish league games. Barcelona opened up a six-point lead in the standings.
Barcelona played most of the match without Lionel Messi, who came off the bench in the 56th after being sidelined for nearly two months because of a left knee injury.
Real Madrid fans loudly jeered their team after the loss, its fourth in the last five games against Barcelona.
Madrid’s players never looked comfortable in Benitez’s deep-lying set-up and the front three were isolated throughout, though Claudio Bravo denied Cristiano Ronaldo superbly late on.
The result means Barca are now six points clear of Madrid at the top of the table and piles further pressure on Benitez’s shoulders ahead of a crucial few weeks before the winter break.