Josep Lago/AFP/GettyImagesReal Madrid had plenty of chances to defeat Barcelona, but Los Blancos at least avoided defeat -- and an 11-point gap with their rival.

So after all the talk of the Liga title being on the line in the first Clasico meeting of the season, it's "as you were" after Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo -- or should that be Barcelona and Real Madrid? -- shared the points in a four-goal thriller at the Camp Nou.

Had Madrid lost and allowed Barcelona to make it a record-breaking seven straight wins to open their league campaign, the title would likely have been destined for a return to Catalonia. Had Los Blancos secured back-to-back league wins at the Camp Nou, it would have thrown them right back into the race to retain their crown. As it transpired, both teams looked pretty settled on a point that doesn't really change much at the top of the table.

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"Who's come out on top in that one?" was the immediate postmatch question. Was it Barcelona for retaining their eight-point gap at the top and stopping their bitter rivals getting any closer? Was it Madrid for not letting Barca pull away and taking an 11-point lead that even die-hard Madridistas would admit to being a massive task for their side? I'm going with the latter. Madrid may be no closer to the Blaugrana after another pulsating Clasico, but defeat for Jose Mourinho's men would have had a bigger impact on the title race than them failing to win.

My postmatch thoughts came with mixed emotions, however. The point avoided the disaster of a defeat, but it could have been a win for a Los Blancos side who are certainly improving with each match this season. Fans and pundits may point to the usual possession-based stat that they love to churn out for Barca matches, but the 70 percent the hosts saw of the ball is seemingly now an obligatory one for Tito Vilanova's side. Madrid played much better than that stat suggests.

The obvious point of reference -- and another "what-if" moment that was crucial in the game -- came in the first half, with Los Blancos 1-0 up. I’m talking about Karim Benzema's miss. Mourinho's men were superb for the first 25 minutes and were left wondering just how they went into half-time on level terms rather than two or three goals to the good. The Frenchman was the guilty party, stumbling slightly when gifted with a glorious chance to double his side's lead when Angel di Maria flicked the ball to him on the edge of the 6-yard box. A striker of his calibre should be putting that away nine times out of 10. This was obviously that one in 10. He hit the post, and di Maria scuffed the rebound wide. That was the moment as far as Madrid were concerned, the moment for them to totally change the game, defending a two-goal cushion. It wasn't to be.

What if ...

Los Blancos were great in the first half. No surprises in the starting lineup, although the inclusion of Mesut Ozil from the off despite his poor form this season probably raised a few eyebrows. They pressed, they were organised, they looked to control the pace of the game and they limited Barca and forced them into errors. The goal came thanks to a flowing move -- the kind of move their hosts would have been proud of -- and it occurred after Madrid had already wasted two good chances through Benzema and Sergio Ramos. It should have been 2-0 just a few minutes later through Benzema but, despite his miss, Madrid were still on top.

Mourinho and his men must have already liked the look of Barcelona's defence going into the game, with Gerard Pique and Carles Puyol out injured. Javier Mascherano and Alex Song seemed to be the likely choices, but Vilanova went for Adriano at centre back. Mourinho must have been well aware his men could cause plenty of problems at the back. There was a sense of fear among the Barcelona faithful whenever Madrid attacked their makeshift defence. Things looked even better for the visitors when Daniel Alves went off injured and the less-experienced Martin Montoya took his place. Ronaldo must have been licking his lips.

Then all of a sudden, boom -- 1-1. Messi. While Madrid should have been going into half-time a few goals up and with a weak defence ahead of them, they were level and the momentum was back with the hosts.

What if ...

At least those what-ifs didn't turn into a defeat. Barcelona improved in the second half and grew in confidence as the minutes ticked over. They had the better of the ball in the second half, the better of the chances and, as the 90th minute edged closer, Mourinho set his men up to be more defensive, to leave with at least something for their efforts.

The match also turned into a bit of a faceoff for the Ballon d'Or. The Messi versus Ronaldo debate often gets tiresome, but you couldn't ignore it on this occasion. Ronaldo scores, Messi scores. Messi scores, Ronaldo scores. Incredible stuff in an incredible game.

There were more "what-ifs" in the Madrid defence. What if Pepe hadn't over-committed on his challenge before Messi tucked away his first? What if Xabi Alonso hadn't dived in on Messi just where he likes to pop it into the back of the net? What if the referee had pointed to the spot when Pepe seemed to fell Andres Iniesta inside the penalty area?

Defeat for Los Blancos would have sent them into the international break pondering how they were going to claw an 11-point gap back on Barcelona. It would have been an extremely long fortnight. As it stands, they can now go into the break with the chance of returning to build on their vastly improved form over the last few weeks. They'll be faced with some very winnable games on their return: Celta, Mallorca, Zaragoza, Levante and Bilbao before El Derby with Atletico. They'll hopefully face those matches with a fully fit Ronaldo, who injured his shoulder late on when attempting an overhead kick but played on through the pain, looking for a remarkable third hat trick in a week. Eight goals in three games ain't bad, though.

It could have been more for Madrid, but Mourinho and his men can take plenty of positives from their Camp Nou draw. They've kept the title race very much alive, they've ended Barca's 100% winning start to their season and they played pretty well, too.

Follow me on Twitter @nicholasrigg

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