Barcelona and Real Madrid will meet, at least competitively, for the 230th time on Sunday. Like all iconic rivalries, some memorable moments were made along the way.
Below are the five that defined the most-storied match in all of football.
5. Barcelona Supporters Throw a Pig's Head at Luis Figo
Luis Figo, like Michael Laudrup and Alfonso Albeniz before him, crossed the great divide in 2000, switching his allegiance from Barcelona to Real Madrid. Needless to say, the Catalonian public were not in agreement. In his second return to the Camp Nou in 2002, Figo thought it was best to poke the bear by taking corner-kicks for Madrid. The crowd responded...by sending a severed pig's head directly at his feet.
4. Jose Mourinho Pokes Tito Vilanova in the Eye
Mourinho did manage to break up the monopoly that was Barcelona by winning the league title in 2011-12, but not before sullying the club's name. At the close of the 2011 Supercopa, the "special" one transformed into the "petulant" one by poking then-assistant Tito Vilanova in the eye.
3. Messi's Hat-Trick Debut
He's the most prolific goalscorer in the rivalry's history (21 goals), and in 2007, he simply foreshadowed what was to come. Lionel Messi scored not one, but three goals in his Clasico debut. It wasn't enough to earn the victory, with the match ending in a 3-3 draw, but it certainly put Los Merengues on notice.
2. Real Madrid Receives a Guard of Honor...from Barcelona
Real Madrid arrived at the Camp Nou in 2008 as the champions of Spain, meaning Barcelona would have to do the unthinkable: Form a guard of honor for their most-hated rival. Adding insult to injury was the 4-1 thrashing Los Blancos delivered before a capacity crowd.
1. Real Madrid 11-1 Barcelona
More than a result, Real Madrid's 11-1 victory over Barcelona created the image of Los Blancos being General Franco's team in 1943. Barca traveled to the Spanish Capital with a 3-0 lead in the semifinals of the Copa Generalissimo, but an uninvited guest before kickoff delivered an unwelcomed message (via Mirror). "Do not forget that some of you are only playing because of the generosity of the regime that has forgiven you for your lack of patriotism."
Less than an hour later, Barcelona were down a man and eight goals. According Fernando Argila, the reserve goalkeeper, it was the birth of El Clasico.
"There was no rivalry. Not, at least, until that game."
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