VIDEO: Barca, Real draw 0-0 as Catalonia protests rage
- Last updated: December 19, 2019 | 00:20
Barcelona and Real Madrid drew 0-0 in a highly-charged Clasico on Wednesday against a background of Catalan independence protests.
The result kept Barcelona on top of La Liga after the first goalless draw between the two bitter rivals in 17 years.
However, outside the Camp Nou, police clashed with protestors with reports of dozens of people injured.Thousands of police and private security guards were deployed in and around Barcelona’s Camp Nou stadium as nearly 100,000 fans attended.
The game between Spanish league leader Barcelona and its fierce rival Real Madrid started without incident in Europe's biggest stadium.
The game between Spanish league leader Barcelona and its fierce rival Real Madrid started without incident in Europe's biggest stadium.
Thousands of fans held up blue banners with the words 'Spain, sit and talk' as Barcelona and Real Madrid kicked off the first Clasico of the season at the Camp Nou.
The banners were given to supporters outside the ground and carried the words, 'Freedom, rights, self-determination', as well as the slogan of Democratic Tsunami, the protest group promoting the cause of Catalan independence.
Lionel Messi and his Barca team-mates arrived in their team bus just before 1800 GMT while bitter rivals Real pulled through the gates around five minutes later, after the two sides had travelled from the same hotel.
Real's bus had been accompanied by whistles and insults from fans on its short trip to the Camp Nou, where they were playing Barca for top spot in La Liga.
As he entered the stadium, Real's club president Florentino Perez gave a thumbs up when asked about the journey in.
"We must take advantage of the magnitude of this match so the world can see our situation from Europe and around the world," said Antoni Rabull, a 73-year-old retiree.
Gareth Bale was handed a surprise start by Zinedine Zidane for Real Madrid's politically charged La Liga meeting with Barcelona on Wednesday.
Bale has been out of the team for Real's previous three games, with his last selection in the starting line-up coming against Alaves on November 30.