The Day Lionel Messi Showed Ronaldo who is the boss and scored 3 Goals

It's the Clasico, it's Ronaldo versus Messi, Bale versus Neymar, it's Real Madrid versus Barcelona. So many times before and when you're in the tunnel you just want to come out. This game may not decide who wins the title but it may well decide who loses. On the beautifully illuminated Estadio Bernabeu, a lush green stage where some of the greatest ever entertainers in the world of sport bid to outmarvel each other tonight. The ninth time he's taken charge of El Gran Classico. Can he shake off Alves? That was a good strong tackle. It's not a free kick for me, outstretched leg. Or Outlook maybe rests on this one win and they're still in a title equation lose and he could be looking for conceded. Here's Lionel Messi. There's Messi, on the blind side is Iniesta. Did he make that pay? Lightning strikes at the Bernabeu. Well he's not been in the goals this season that much but look at this finish, lovely. He's one of the referees that lets things go. Here is Neymar, one-on-one situation and he forces the first save. Costly price tags, we're looking very nervous. They bring back Fabregas, ball is teased up there and there's certainly a case to consider. With fellow Brazilian Alves for company on the far side, he decides to go solo. Neymar stopped at first base by Pepe. Di Maria, Fabregas, Neymar drifts inside. One they're appealing for, does it hit him on the arm? No, here comes Barcelona, control the ball, look at that, the control from Messi. Bang on the side, can he finish it? No, Lionel Messi couldn't. Wow, that's 31 only of course Atletico Madrid crucially beat them here this season. Messi, great ball, Neymar takes it in his stride, has to steady himself. Stopped once but this time swiftly into the area, lays it back, Benzema! Bluffs his lines on the big stage. Well that was nothing short of sensational the run from that man Di Maria. Di Maria's cross, Benzema fighting, Warnock, Warnock, Valdez got a hand to it. He'll feel he should have kept it out, he's celebrating. Well this game's certainly living up to the Bill and Rob. That's a fabulous cross from Di Maria who's been on form from the first kick off and you're right. Right, how did Barcelona respond? Di Maria has space, cooks it in, Benzema! His second! Di Maria got off his sink bed to create that one and it was a Benzema. Well he might have missed the centre in the first seven or eight minutes. Karim Benzema but he's made up for it. Modric trying to free bail, Piquet across, no missing. I think that was a show of respect then wasn't it to Gareth Bale. Maniesta, again appeared to be handballed. Undefeated Di Maria. Di Maria is having an exceptional game. My goodness. Gets the cross in, Benzema waiting, he's hat-tricked, he's denied! Comes in from the left-hand side. Oh, that's a bad chance. Given some rough treatment in the first yellow card of the evening. He's shown to Amhel. Messi tries to quicken the game, bounces off Ramos, plays it into Neymar, slow to react but Messi's not! Lionel Messi individually brings Barcelona back into the game. They're going to get the ball out of the box and we forgot about the quality of the goal and Messi's great first touch. He played the little one-two, got the rebound, stuck in the bottom corner. Neymar has been bothered by Di Maria. Caval cross the line, Benzema! Oh my goodness. He scored two, he could have had five. Wow. Well he's had one cleared off. Well it's been a match of you attack, we attack. Both sides forgetting how to defend. Giant fixture. This has been exceptional so far. Which way will it sway? Great turn from Agnesto. Oh, he loses possession. How did he get that back? Di Maria starts to slalom. Turn into his Argentinian teammate Mascarana. Now Ronaldo. Into the area where they have to be careful. He's down! It's a penalty! I'll tell you, this is outside the box. There it is. It's at least six inches outside the box and he falls in. On the big stage, in the big game, he gets the big goal. Big controversy tomorrow in the newspapers. Bale. Can he impose himself? Oh look at this. Great run from Gareth Bale. Bale to Benzema! What a brilliant stop by Valdez. What a scintillating run from Gareth Bale. He explodes through the middle. And great ball to Karim Benzema. Be very, very careful. This game is on a knife edge. Messi by Cristiano Ronaldo. You can hear all the cameras clicking there. Messi. Great ball. Perfect pass. Neymar. Big chance. Taken down. And that's a penalty. A red. And a red! Penalty away. And now the world's eyes are watching Messi. And Messi does what Ronaldo did. And makes it 3-3. Very emphatic. Finished that one. Daddy run up and hammered it with the left foot. Well, what a game we've got now. 3-3. Comes out to Iniesta. Oh, some shot. Oh, it looks like he's taking a flexion. I'll tell you what. It's a snapshot from the edge of the box. Ronaldo cuts it across. Benzema regains a little lovely backflip. Bale. And it needed saving. Valdez got all of his angles correctly worked out. Oh, when these front three are on song. Well, interesting substitution. Karim Benzema, who remembers on two goals and chasing a hat-trick, that he has been sacrificed for Verran. 34th career back. It's a soft free kick, I think, Rob. Modric. Contact made by Cesc Fabregas. Six goals so far, but Real Madrid notably a man down. And you know they're going to try to do everything to try to even things out. Well, Busquets is getting booked for this one. Flicked. Barcelona playing games here with Real Madrid. Alves crashes off the post. What a strike from Dani Alves outside the box, Rob. You can see it's teed up here by Messi. One touch. Bang. Bottom right-hand post straight out again. How lucky was that? A puff of the cheeks from Ancelotti. In the Spanish capital. Pepe. Gareth Bale. Now Pepe goes down. Yet again. And Xabi played the game after that and they haven't lost since. And he goes down and the referee took no time at all to give the third penalty of the match. I have to say it didn't look, my first reaction was it didn't look like a penalty. Did not look like a penalty. Well, Senor, he has scored tonight. Even the great Lionel Messi looks a little pensive. It's Messi and it's a massive goal in La Liga. It keeps Barcelona's season alive. And it may mean that it's not goodbye to Tata Martino just yet. A little Messi hat trick. The little genius has done it again. There's a substitution warmed up, stripped off. It's Isco down in the touchline. He's going to come on. I don't know who. A little John Aldridge shuffle then from Messi. And now we have another big decision. It's the yellow card for Cristiano. Frustration is boiling over. Certainly haven't changed my mind. It's a late challenge from Gareth Bale. Just two and a half minutes remaining in this game. All hinged on this Sergio Ramos sending off. Now Modric is in hot water. Referee signals the end of a dramatic match where the referee has been a central figure in it. Two penalties, a red card, a Messi hat trick, a goal early on. He's had everything. You can see that Barcelona.