26.02.2012 » Rayo 0-1 Real Madrid. Ronaldo back heel magic strikes again
A moment of pure magic produced by Cristiano Ronaldo was enough for Real Madrid to come off with the 3 points from the "Vallecas" stadium, as the Merengues defeated Rayo Vallecano by 0-1. In what was a very tough game for José Mourinho's men, Ronaldo scored an anthological back heel goal that allowed his side to keep the 10 points lead over Barcelona, after the Blaugrana also won their game against Atletico Madrid this Sunday night.
Cristiano Ronaldo game photos in Rayo Vallecano vs Real Madrid
Rayo Vallecano 0-1 Real Madrid goals and highlights:
Rayo Vallecano's home ground pitch is known for having very small dimensions. However, José Sandoval's side proved that smaller teams can still put big teams like Real Madrid into trouble, without approaching the game with over excessive defensive tactics. In a match where both teams fought bravely during the 90 minutes, Real Madrid failed to control the ball possession and never imposed their game, something that they naturally do in almost every other La Liga game. The half-time revealed a split 50-50 in ball possession, but the most surprising stat came up at the 2nd of the half, with Rayo Vallecano's side ending the game with 54% of ball possession, against 46% from Real Madrid.
With Karim Benzema and Angel di María still sidelined due to injury, there are surely no doubts that this has been one of the most tough away games Real Madrid had this season and the simple fact that the Merengues came home with the 3 points, is just a great sign that this team is becoming more mature and know how to suffer, but still get the needed result.
The 1st half ended goalless, but Real Madrid couldn't really complain about the result, since it has been Rayo Vallecano who had the best goal scoring chances by then. Sandoval's side greatest opportunity appeared near the 39th minute, in a play where Titi dribbled Arbeloa, just before smashing the ball against the post, while Iker Casillas could only stair at the strike. The game was also being prone in intense markings, as both Pepe and Sergio Ramos were having many problems to deal with the Brazilian striker, Diego Costa.
The highlight of this match and most likely one of the seasons as well, took place already during the 2nd half. Close to the 53th minute, a corner kick taken by Mesut Ozil would result in a loose ball, which Cristiano Ronaldo quickly reacted to and from a surprising back heel shot, the Portuguese scored one of the best goals of the season. A truly magical moment that allowed Real Madrid to get the lead and preserve it until the end. With this goal, Ronaldo reaches the 29th goal mark in La Liga, still 1 goal ahead of Lionel Messi (28 goals), with only 24 games played so far.
From that point on, both sides still created good opportunities to score more goals, but once again, the best chances belonged to Rayo Vallecano. Without finding an effective way to hit the back of the net, Rayo Vallecano can at least be proud of their performance against La Liga leaders, even though they walked out of this game without a single point earned. In the other hand, Real Madrid realized this was one of those games where the players just need to fight intensively for every loose ball and even without being able to put on a good performance, the Merengues brought a valuable win that keeps them 10 points ahead of Barcelona.
Real Madrid line-up vs Rayo Vallecano:
Goalkeeper: Casillas
Defenders:
Marcelo, Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Arbeloa
Midfielders:
Xabi Alonso, Khedira, Ozil
Attackers: Kaká, Cristiano Ronaldo and Higuaín
| Match stats provided by www.ronaldo7.net
|
||
|---|---|---|
Rayo Vallecano
|
vs
|
Real Madrid
|
0 |
Goals |
1 |
0 |
Assists |
0 |
7 |
Shots |
9 |
1 |
Shots on goal |
3 |
12 |
Corner kicks |
5 |
17 |
Fouls commited |
16 |
3 |
Yellow cards |
6 |
1 |
Red cards |
0 |
54% |
Ball possession |
46% |
Real Madrid next game will be for La Liga, against Espanyol in the 4th of March 2012. In the meanwhile, clubs competitions will pause and there are a few international friendly games coming up. You can watch Juventus live stream, Bosnia vs Brazil, Germany vs France, England vs Netherlands and Italy vs USA from our football live streams section. Cristiano Ronaldo is expected to be on the line-up when Portugal faces Poland this Wednesday.
Real Madrid vs Espanyol kick-off time (04-03-2012):
Jakarta (Indonesia) | GMT+7: 03:30
Spain (Madrid) | GMT+1: 21:30
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | GMT+0: 20:30
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | GMT-2: 18:30
New York (United States) | GMT-5: 15:30
Los Angeles (United States) | GMT-8: 12:30
Beijing (China) | GMT-8: 12:30
Sources: ronaldo7.net / realmadrid.com
