Barça Legends 3-2 Real Madrid Leyendas: Ronaldinho still has his magic

The Barça Legends have replicated what their peers did last Sunday by defeating Real Madrid 3-2, in the case of the veterans in Beirut on Friday evening.

Ronaldinho was the biggest attraction as he donned the famous blaugrana shirt for a match for the first time since departing the club in 2008, and we were treated to several memories of his Brazilian magic, including assists for all three FCB goals, the first to Ludovic Giuly, which he did without even looking, a clone of the goal they scored against Milan in the 2006 Champions League semi-final.

Watched by 38,134 people in the Camille Chamoun stadium, there was plenty to enjoy. Barça dominated early doors, but Fernando Sanz was able to level affairs with a bulleted strike off a corner, and Angoy had plenty of work in the first 45 minutes.

Ronaldinho then conjured up his second goal of the night, this time teeing things up for Simao to convert in classy fashion – a fine reminder of the goal the Portuguese striker netted against Real Madrid in a 2-0 win at the Camp Nou way back in the 2000/01 season.

Giuly brace

The second half saw Real Madrid grow, but just when the Catalans were struggling most, they bit a second time. Ronaldinho was involved once again, building up for Giuly's powerful finish to make it 3-1. Javi Guerrero pulled one back for Madrid six minutes from the end with a cheeky chip over substitute keeper Guzmán.

All in all it was a wonderful occasion for the Beirut fans to savour, with Ronaldinho’s name chanted by the crowd in recognition of a stellar performance, but with the fans in the ground (plus six million more viewers all around the world on Facebook) able to enjoy the chance to remember past glories in the form of the such superstars as Eric Abidal, Andoni Goikotxea, Miguel Angel Nadal, Gianluca Zambrotta, José Edmílson, Edgar Davids, Gaizka Mendieta and others.

The Barça Legends will be action on June 30, this time a little closer to home at the Camp Nou against the Manchester United Legends. Bring it on!