Jude Bellingham equals incredible Cristiano Ronaldo record after scoring winner vs Barcelona in El Clasico
Jude Bellingham has emulated Cristiano Ronaldo by becoming the first Real Madrid player in nine years to score against Barcelona in both league games in a season.
The 20-year-old Englishman continued his dream start to life at the Santiago Bernabeu by popping up with a stoppage-time winner as Los Blancos pipped their arch-rivals in a five-goal thriller on Sunday (April 21).
In a frenetic start to proceedings, Andreas Christensen put the visitors in front after six minutes before Vinicius Jr. restored parity from the spot 12 minutes later. Fermin Lopez put Barca back in front 21 minutes from time, but Lucas Vasquez made it 2-2 four minutes later.
Just when it seemed that a draw would ensue, Bellingham's 17th La Liga goal of the season meant that Madrid completed the league double over Barca. It also sent them 11 points clear at the top with six games left, with a record-extending 36th top-flight title almost a formality now.
It's pertinent to note that Bellingham also scored a stoppage-time winner in the reverse fixture in October. The Englishman fired in a 68th-minute equaliser at the Estadio Olympic Lluis Companys before bagging a stunning winner.
Ronaldo, meanwhile, scored in the 3-1 La Liga home win over Barca in the 2014-15 season and the 2-1 away loss. Despite his 48-goal season, Madrid finished two points behind their arch-rivals, who clinched the title with 94 points.
What is Cristiano Ronaldo's record against Barcelona?
Cristiano Ronaldo is widely regarded as one of the best players to grace the beautiful game.
Now at Al-Nassr, the 39-year-old has scored over 870 goals for club and country, the most by any male player. Twenty of those goals have come against Barcelona, most of them while he was at Real Madrid between 2009 and 2018.
In 34 games across competitions, the five-time Ballon d'Or has 20 goals and three assists. Eighteen of those strikes came with Los Blancos, while the other two came while he was at Juventus between 2018 and 2021.
Those are also his only strikes in the UEFA Champions League against Barcelona after going scoreless in five games (three with Manchester United and two with Los Blancos).