Real Madrid vs. Barcelona, 2013 El Clasico: Halftime score 1-1, Benzema and Messi have things even at the break
Real Madrid took an early lead thanks to Karim Benzema but Lionel Messi struck back for Barcelona and we’re tied 1-1 at halftime.
It's halftime at the Santiago Bernabéu with Real Madrid and Barcelona tied 1-1 after an entertaining and wide open 45 minutes of play.
Real Madrid picked up right where they left off on Tuesday scoring an early goal and not allowing Barcelona to get any kind of momentum. Álvaro Morata's perfectly placed cross got through the Barcelona defense and ended up right on the foot of Karim Benzema who'd blown past Javier Mascherano. Benzema easily tapped the ball past Victor Valdés and the already loud Santiago Bernabéu was rocking even more.
Barcelona responded in the 18th minute when Dani Alves found Lionel Messi sneaking past Madrid's high defensive line. The Argentine striker moved into the Madrid box, cut hard inside past Sergio Ramos and beat Diego Lopez with a low shot to even the match at 1-1.
The game slowed down after the Barcelona goal with both sides getting a bit sloppy with the ball. Sergio Ramos nearly gifted Pedro a chance after preventing the ball from going out for a corner but leaving it sitting in the his own penalty area for the Barca froward. Before Pedro could do anything though, Ramos recovered and took the ball off his foot with a well timed tackle.
Messi got a great chance in the 32nd minute with a close range shot from the center of the Madrid box. Fortunately for Madrid the shot was right at Lopez and he stopped it without issue.
Madrid nearly took the lead back in the 39 minute when Luka Modric spotted Morata unmarked on the left side of the Barcelona area. Modric sent a laser beam pass that Morata headed powerfully into the side netting. The younger striker looked on in confusion, knowing he'd just missed a great opportunity.
