Real Madrid's Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo (L) heads the ball next to Barcelona's Chiliean forward Alexis Sanchez (R) during the Spanish League "El clasico" football match Barcelona vs Real Madrid at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona on April 21.
Crisitiano Ronaldo has scored the winning goal for Real Madrid in their 2-1 win over Barcelona, dealing a potentially fatal blow to the Catalan side’s hopes of retaining the La Liga title.
Real’s Sami Khedira put Madrid ahead 17 minutes into the game in Camp Nou on Saturday, but Alexis Sanchez bundled in the equalizer for Barcelona on the 70th minute.
Two minutes later, however, Ronaldo beat the offside trap to collect a fine pass down the right, netted his 54th goal of the season and silenced the recently invigorated home crowd.
Real Madrid now lead their archrivals by seven points with only four games remaining on the fixture list. Barcelona still hold a 29-point lead over third-placed Valencia, who host Real Betis later today.
"We've taken a gigantic step in La Liga by defeating Barcelona," Real captain Iker Casillas told the club's website.
"There are still points in play and we must show respect for our opponents, but winning here is taking an important step in the championship,” he added.
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