Tuesday, May 22nd, 2012
All eyes were on Lionel Messi and Pepe’s hand shake before kick, whilst just ten seconds into the contest Real could have taken the lead as Gonzalo Higuain snuck in behind Pique only to see Pinto save his shot. Real continued to look threatening as Pinto saved well to deny Gonzalo Higuain a header from a free-kick. Los Blancos were desperately unlucky not to score in the 25th when Mesut Ozil thundered a 30-yarder against the Barca bar, the ball bounced down and somehow escaped going in the net. At the other end Pepe was lucky to escape a booking for a dive in a tangle with Carles Puyol. After dominating without scoring Real Madrid conceded in the 43rd; Messi drove at pace at the visitors defence, slipped a pass out wide to Pedro Rodriguez and the sub coolly slotted in the opener. After Lionel Messi was booked in a revenge attack on Pepe, incredibly in the second minute of extra time of the first half Dani Alves belted home a sensational shot into the far top corner to leave Real feeling sick. Madrid’s disappointment continued in the 53rd minute when Sergio Ramos had a header controversially disallowed. The Madridstas did have some joy in the 67th as Ozil slipped a pass to Cristiano Ronaldo who rounded Pinto and scored from an acute angle. Pepe was soon back under the microscope as he appeared to slap Cesc around the chops with a stray hand. Amazingly Real levelled the match 2-2 in the 71st when Karim Benzema collected a bouncing ball in attack, beat Puyol majestically and drilled home the equaliser.
Video Highlights 25/01/2012: Barcelona – Real Madrid (Copa del Rey)
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Tags: 25/01/2012, barcellona, calcio, coppa del re, coppa del re 2012, real madrid
