Feeling the pressure of El Clasico

Our trainee reporter Maryam Al Shamsi gets caught up in the tension of the Real Madrid - Barcelona championship decider in the Spanish football league.

Maryam Al Shamsi in her Real Madrid kit. Maryam Al Shamsi/ The National

It is the most hotly-contested game of the year in the Spanish football league. Real Madrid versus their arch-rival Barcelona. The clash of El Clasico.
There is so much history behind the game and so much dislike between the two sets of fans.
To quote American rock singer Henry Rollins: "Nothing brings people together more than mutual hatred."
As a Real Madrid fan, for me this is among the most nerve-racking games of the year. This season even more so, as both teams were so close at the top of La Liga.
This year, I hoped Real Madrid could seize the three points and then go on to win the championship.
In the run-up to the game, I spend a lot of time considering the outcome. I do my homework, I stay updated with any news regarding the match, the analysis, the team formation, and more.
For example, I read that Sergio Busquets, the Barcelona midfielder would not play in this El Clasico.
I knew it was some kind of trick to deceive the fans into thinking he will not be able to play. But then, surprise, surprise, Busquets did come off the bench in the second half of El Clasico.
I was invited to watch the match in Layaly Zaman, a Lebanese cafe in Abu Dhabi. I am not such a fan of these places as I don't really like the atmosphere. No one is interacting with each other. Nevertheless, I just went there to keep my friends happy.
One friend of mine is probably the most passionate football supporter I know. He is a Real Madrid fan like me, but because he gets so angry about the games I describe him as a hooligan!
During the match, I tried to remain upbeat that if Real Madrid played well they would invariably win.
That said, I predicted that Real Madrid would create less chances to score than Barcelona.
This meant we would have to constantly keep pressuring Barcelona and attack more.
Indeed, the first half was great. I kept urging Isco and Gareth Bale to defend as well to help out Dani Carvajal and Marcelo at the back.
Unfortunately, we went 1-0 down, but then Ronaldo scored the equaliser.
Afterwards, I couldn't stop viewing repeats of the goal on Instagram.
It was amazing to watch the teamwork when Modric slid the forward to pass to Karim Benzema, who targeted a back heel flick to Ronaldo, who then scored.
But Real Madrid kept missing chances, such as when Cristiano Ronaldo hit the crossbar and Gareth Bale scored an offside goal.
I kept telling myself we could win, despite these mishaps.
But then the second half happened.
Benzema was splendid and the same went for Ronaldo. But Bale? He was nowhere to be seen in the second half.
Barcelona took the opportunity to dominate the game and Luis Suarez scored a sneaky goal.
It pains me to admit it, but Barcelona were the better team after halftime. Typically however, they pulled off some dirty tricks to win, especially Neymar's constant diving.
The so-called BBC — Bale, Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo — squandered the game in the second half. The lack of quality substitutes also weakened the team.
And watching the disconnection between the midfielders and attackers left me emotionally drained.
I knew at that very moment that Real Madrid had no chance of winning.
Anyway, my boss is always telling me to be more positive. So here goes.
At least this game was a lot cleaner than most of the previous El Clasicos.
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