Victor scores twice as Barcelona beat Real Madrid in US friendly

Pau Victor scored twice as Barcelona beat Spanish rivals and La Liga champions Real Madrid in a friendly in the United States of America.

Real were without England international Jude Bellingham and France forward Kylian Mbappe, with the duo missing the club’s tour of the US after playing at this summer’s European Championship in Germany for their respective countries.

In what was the first El Clasico of the season, the match at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey was paused after 12 minutes because of a heavy storm.

The action resumed after a delay of more than an hour, and Barcelona took the lead just before half-time when 22-year-old forward Victor headed in from Robert Lewandowski’s ball.

Thibaut Courtois made a good save from Lewandowski before Victor got his second of the game shortly after the break to double the lead for Hansi Flick’s side.

Nico Paz headed home late on for Real Madrid but Barcelona held firm to secure the victory.

Victor’s double means he has scored three goals in Barcelona’s two games during their tour of the US, having also struck in a 2-2 draw with Premier League champions Manchester City earlier this week.

The defeat was Real Madrid’s second of their US tour after losing 1-0 to Italians AC Milan last week.

They play Premier League side Chelsea on 6 August in North Carolina, but Real boss Carlo Ancelotti is not reading too much into his side’s successive losses.

Vinicius Jr looked sharp as he played his first minutes of the summer for the Spanish giants and Ancelotti said the games’ purpose was to give his players game time rather than focus on the result.

“We’re working on our preparations and the players are gradually coming back to the team. The result is not so important,” he said.

“The objective is for players to get minutes and to get them in good shape. We’re not focusing on tactical aspects. That starts on the seventh [of August].

“We’re not worried. It’s a pre-season game and we’re missing eight players.”