'Spain, sit and talk': tens of thousands of banners shown right El Clásico kick off
Chants of 'Independence' and 'freedom for political prisoners' as some tension is reported outside the stadium
Tens of thousands of people showed light blue Tsunami Democràtic banners in the Camp Nou stadium right before the kick off of the FC Barcelona and Real Madrid on Wednesday evening.
The banners read 'Spain, sit and talk,' and at the same time, attendees chanted 'independence' and 'freedom for political prisoners.'
Two big banners were hung from the stands, reading 'freedom' and 'Spain, sit and talk,' but the match began with no further incidents.
Catalan police charged against protesters at the doors of the stadium just as the game went to half time, with a group of demonstrators building and burning barricades and some, in balaclavas, throwing objects to the police cordon. Officers responded to the demonstrators with foam bullets.
Meanwhile, some demonstrators tried to break into the Camp Nou premisses trying to open the gates of the accesses.
Around the 56th minute, protesting fans began throwing inflatable balls onto the pitch and once again chanted for independence while holding up the Tsunami Democràtic banners reading 'Spain, sit and talk.' The incident caused a momentary pause in play.
In total, five were arrested following the game, and 21 people were treated for medical injuries.