The Real Champs
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Three takeaways from Real Madrid’s 4-1 win vs. Girona

By Kristofer McCormack

09 Karim Benzema from France of Real Madrid celebrating hhis goal with 04 Sergio Ramos from Spain of Real Madrid during the La Liga game between Girona FC against Real Madrid in Montilivi Stadium at Girona, on 26 of August of 2018, Spain. (Photo by Xavier Bonilla/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
09 Karim Benzema from France of Real Madrid celebrating hhis goal with 04 Sergio Ramos from Spain of Real Madrid during the La Liga game between Girona FC against Real Madrid in Montilivi Stadium at Girona, on 26 of August of 2018, Spain. (Photo by Xavier Bonilla/NurPhoto via Getty Images) /
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Real Madrid avenged last season’s defeat to Girona with a 4-1 win over the Catalans on Sunday. Here are three takeaways from the game.

A gritty win

For much of the first half, there was a sense of deja vu at the Estadio Montolivi. Madrid had been run ragged by an energetic and organized Girona side. Much like last season’s visit to northeast Catalonia, where Madrid was lucky to be in front at halftime, the visitors were lucky to find themselves level come the halftime whistle.

Eusebio Sacristán’s side had at least two more chances to extend their lead, one of those chances requiring a goal-line clearance from Dani Carvajal.

Memories of Los Blancos’ chaotic second halves last season still fresh in the mind, one couldn’t have been blamed for fearing the worst as the second half got underway.

However, instead of the helter-skelter search for a go-ahead goal, Real Madrid fans were treated to a controlled and efficient response from their side, a response that yielded three goals.

Girona provided Lopetegui’s men with an early test of their grit and Los Blancos passed with flying colors. It’s the type of performance that wins league titles and generally a performance Madrid fans are accustomed to seeing towards the end of the season (see the finish to the 2016-17 season) rather than August.

In their last 19 league campaigns, this is just the seventh time Real Madrid have won their opening two games. In those seven seasons, Madrid has won the league title four times. FC Barcelona has won their opening two league fixtures nine times in the same time span, winning the league seven out of those nine seasons.

Early season grit has been something desperately missing from Real’s recent league challenges and on more than one occasion it has seen Los Blancos’ title challenge derailed before Christmas.

There promises to be plenty of similar challenges that Girona posed to Real on the road ahead and one hopes that the response we saw in the second half from Madrid is going to become a consistent trait of Lopetegui’s team.

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