Football
Benzema missed two penalties, but Real Madrid still won comfortably. It only needs 4 points to win the title
Real Madrid took on Osasuna on Wednesday night, always a very tough game at El Sadar Stadium. But the table leader did well in Pamplona and won 3-1, and even Karim Benzema gave away two penalties. That’s the last step to the title.
Real Madrid took on Osasuna on Wednesday night, always a very tough game at El Sadar Stadium. But the table leader did well in Pamplona and won 3-1, and even Karim Benzema gave away two penalties. That’s the last step to the title.
Los Blancos have had a tough schedule, last week they had to manage 120 minutes with Chelsea in the Champions League, at the weekend they turned the game with Sevilla in the last minute.
Ancelotti rotated the line-up a lot, for example Luka Modric and Casemiro did not travel to Pamplona, only Toni Kroos, Vinicius Junior and Dani Carvajal stayed on the bench.
The start of the match was a bit more tepid, but they scored the first goal. After a set signal, Ceballos found Benzema at the back post, who played in Alaba, who headed the ball into the net.
But Osasuna didn’t want to be embarrassed and equalised a minute later when Budimir headed a shot into the net. But from the 20th minute Real took over and created one promising opportunity after another. It all culminated in the 45th minute when Camavinga’s beautiful curve found Ceballos, whose shot was deflected by Herrera only to Asensio, who made no mistake.
In the second half, Real Madrid could have buried the game for good, but Karim Benzema spurned the chance. In fact, he gave away a penalty in the 52nd minute and had a chance for a replay in the 59th minute. However, he kicked the penalty kick to the same place, the bottom left corner, where Herrera was waiting again.
But Real were not too upset, they continued to create chances, mainly from counter-attacks towards the end. In the 90th minute, Vinícius came on the pitch and managed to do a lot. First, his speed on the break allowed him to get to an own goal, but he missed. Moments later, he again tackled a stopper in a 1v1 situation, this time passing the ball to Vazquez, who converted to make it 3-1.
The Merengues have increased their lead at the top of the league table over Atlético to 17 points, with third-placed Barcelona 18 points behind and two games in hand. For Real Madrid, 15 points are still in play, but they only need to win 4 points to secure the league title.
If they win their next game against Espanyol, they would only need a point in the derby with Atlético. But if Barcelona lose to Real Sociedad on Thursday night or Rayo at the weekend, Los Blancos will only need a win against Espanyol to win the title.
Source: Real Madrid, La Liga