It was a tale of two halves to put it lightly. Real Madrid returned to La Liga action Sunday after two weeks off for the international break, to face mid-table side Deportivo Alavés. While the scoreline may read 3-0 to Real Madrid, it was no easy victory or rout. Ben Sundock tells you more.
If you didn’t have the chance to watch the entirety of the Real Madrid – Deportivo Alavés game, then you missed a crazy one.
It was a tale of two halves for Los Blancos at home in front of a sellout crowd, with great pressure and possession in the first half, giving way to a second half that was filled with mental errors, poor defensive miscues, and a couple should-have-been goals from Alavés.
Yet, the score still reads Real Madrid 3, Alavés 0.
Goals from Karim Benzema in the 31st minute, and a couple of late ‘icing on the cake’ goals from Isco (a beautifully placed shot just below the bar) and a rebound header from Nacho, were enough to get Zinedine’s Zidane’s side all three points, despite playing a heavily rotated squad.
First Half
The first half began with Real Madrid setting the tone with the majority of the possession in the first 10 or so minutes, having the ball in the Alavés half more than the visiting team.
In the 10th minute, a seemingly harmless pass back to goalkeeper Kiko Casilla from recently reactivated center back Raphael Varane, was put out of play by Casilla as Varane fell to the turf appearing to clutch the hamstring that he had injured over a month ago.
Raphael Varane looks to have tweaked that hamstring again, forcing him off in the 11th minute. Carvajal on #RealMadridAlaves
— The Real Champs (@TheRealChampsFS) April 2, 2017
The replacement of Varane with Carvajal, seemed to help Real going forward, with the pacey Spaniard on one flank, with always attacking full back Danilo on the opposite wing.
In the 17th minute, a great steal from Cristiano Ronaldo resulted in the first yellow card of the match, with Alavés’ Ely, who pulled the winger down just outside the area. The ensuing freekick, taken by Gareth Bale, narrowly missed the far post.
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The first goal of the match, from Benzema, came just 6 minutes after a ball fell for midfielder Isco just inside the penalty area, but the curling shot just managed to sail over the bar.
Benzema’s goal was thanks in large part to himself, as he started the give and go with Carvajal on the wing, and as Carvajal went towards the goal, drawing defenders, Benzema hung around the penalty spot, and expertly dispatched the great centering pass from Dani.
To conclude the half, a missed Ronaldo free kick, and a great attack from Ronaldo, Danilo, and Bale just barely missed the target keeping it 1-0 Real Madrid after 45 minutes.
Second Half
Well, the second half was far less impressive from Real Madrid than the first.
Danilo and Luka Modric struggled to make good passes through the midfield, turning the ball over several times in the opening minutes of the half, giving way to two decent chances from Alavés.
Both Deyverson and Manu Garcia had good chances to level the game, but a flubbed header on a good opportunity just after the 50th minute.
At the hour mark, it was again Manu Garcia who put a great cross into Edgar, who settled the ball and just barely missed the far post as the sprawling Casilla wouldn’t have reached the ball.
Luka Modric was subbed out in the 68th minute, after a very un-Luka like day, where the usually spot on midfielder made several mistakes and turnovers, and looked slow in the second half.
He was replaced by Mateo Kovacic who came on and put in 20 minutes of good work, making several good runs deep into the heart of the Alavés defense.
Ronaldo shanked a great chance in front of goal in the 76th minute, putting the left footed shot no where near the goal, not challenging the keeper.
It was Isco who finally broke the near hour goal drought with a stunning finishing just glancing the underside of the bar to beat Pacheco and seal the 3 points for Real.
The beautiful through ball from Ronaldo set Isco up and despite the defense riding his back, Isco was able to put home the brace.
So, is it safe to say now that Ronaldo is not a selfish player after yet another great assist and no goal in this game? I would say so.
It was Gareth Bale, the Welsh Dragon, who set up the third goal as well, banging a freekick right off the crossbar, and straight to the head of the waiting Nacho Fernandez who easily put the ball in the net past the sprawling Alavés keeper, capping the game 3-0 in favor of the Royal Whites.
The near beaut from Bale, turned into a garbage goal for Nacho, but, it counted all the same.
Three points and now 5 points clear, Real Madrid started the month of April off right with a decisive victory over a scrappy team.
Next up, Real will travel to Leganes on Wednesday, as the grueling month of April is just beginning, and Zidane knows it saying in his post game press conference:
Zidane: "Now every three days we play a final, the players know it perfectly".
— Real Madrid Info ³⁵ (@RMadridInfo) April 2, 2017