El Clásico: Spanish press slam Real Madrid star Gareth Bale and praise Barcelona's Luis Suarez

Spain's press have once again made former Tottenham star Gareth Bale the scapegoat in Real Madrid's 2-1 defeat to Barcelona, while Luis Suarez was hailed as the big hero of El Clasico.

The former Liverpool star scored the winner in the second half of the game to lead FC Barcelona to a victory which leaves the Catalans on the top of the La Liga table, four points above Carlo Ancelotti's side with 10 games remaining.

Even though Jeremy Mathieu gave Barcelona the lead earlier in the game, Real Madrid were superior before half-time after Cristiano Ronaldo levelled the game.

But Suarez's goal killed Real Madrid's hopes to win the game as Barcelona had a number of chances to score a third goal in the last 15 minutes of the game.

With Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi far from their peak, Karim Benzema and Luka Modric were the best Real Madrid players so far, while Gerard Pique was arguably the Man of the Match for the Catalans.

But Suarez received the biggest praise from Spanish press after scoring a fantastic goal while turning into the nightmare of Sergio Ramos and Pepe due to his usual hard-work.

AS gave him the Man of the Match award while saying: "He appeared when Barcelona were suffering the most to score a fantastic and decisive goal".

Marca added: "A class act in El Clásico. Suarez fades out the Real Madrid BBC (Benzema, Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo). He was the best out of the two attack trios"

Meanwhile, Sport points out how Suarez "made the difference for Barcelona showing his clinical skills" while Benzema, the Real Madrid number nine, couldn't score despite his impressive game.

Mundo Deportivo also hailed Suarez, claiming he is definitely a player for the "big games".

Barcelona manager Luis Enrique also paid tribute to his striker after the game while hailing he proved while the Catalans paid £65m to Liverpool to secure his services this summer.

"He played very well in the second half, as he did in the first. That is why we paid what we did for Suárez. I'm glad that we have a player who can be decisive. We have been happy with him since he arrived for his commitment and qualities he gives the team," he said,

"I think I said this before, he is not just an old-fashioned striker, he is a forward who knows how to relate to his team-mates, who can shoot, who is physically tough, and who has the right kind of character for the way we play."

And while Suarez was the big winner of the Clasico another ex-Premier League star, Bale, turned into the big loser for the Spanish media.

The former Tottenham star arrived at the game under big scrutiny, following accusations of lack of commitment and being a ball-hog.

And after the game AS even refused to give him a score while adding: "What a day! He started with commitment in defend but was disappearing. During the second half he was missing.

Marca, meanwhile, gave him a 4 out of ten, meaning he was the only Real Madrid player who failed the big test.