Friday, October 28, 2011

Real Madrid 3 - 0 Villarreal (Spanish League Day 10)

Real Madrid scare their opponents. They step onto the pitch looking to seal matches from the very beginning. Mourinho's men asphyxiate rivals. Villarreal suffered Malaga's fate tonight, conceding 2 goals in the opening ten minutes. Real Madrid have already tallied 31 strikes in nine games, and they've only conceded six.

Di Maria scored the third Real Madrid goal against Villarreal
Angel Di Maria celebrates his goal against Villarreal

Every player pressurised the opponent after kick-off. Villarreal were scared and couldn't believe their eyes. Benzemamade the starting lineup and led the team's attack. The French striker scored the opener by subtly defeating Diego Lopez after receiving a long pass from Di Maria (5'). Five minutes later, Kaka controlled the ball outside the box with his back to goal, dribbled past Borja Valero and sent a powerful shot to the back of Villarreal's net. Real were winning 2-0 and there were still 80 minutes left in the game.

The Whites played a slower game, but Villarreal still didn't pose a threat. Real cleared a corner-kick on the 30-minute mark and the ball landed at Kaka's feet. The Brazilian gave it to Marcelo, who in turn passed it to Benzema. The French striker then assisted Di Maria with a spectacular long pass and the Argentine netted the team's third strike. The crowd simply went wild.

Real Madrid continued to dominate after half-time albeit at a slower pace. Villarreal still failed to take advantage of this and didn't even get close to the Madridistas' box. Mourinho made Ozil come on for Di Maria in the 69th minute. Villarreal had more possession but still failed to pose a threat on Casillas' goal. The locals simply waited to steal the ball and surprise Diego Lopez in a counterattack.

Benzema received a standing ovation when he came off for Higuain on the 74-minute mark and the crowd extended it for the Argentine striker. Arbeloa had a chance to score five minutes later, but Lopez managed to clear his shot. Moments later, Alonso was replaced by Coentrao, who also received a standing ovation.

In the end, Real just needed a brilliant first half to earn their fifth consecutive victory in La Liga. They will look to seal a perfect run in October on Saturday against Real Sociedad in San Sebastian.

Summary

Stadium: Santiago Bernabeu
Attendance: 55,000
Goals: 1-0, m.6: Benzema; 2-0, m.11: Kaka; 3-0, m.30: Di Maria.