25.08.2014 » Real Madrid 2-0 Cordoba. Benzema and Ronaldo split the honors
It sure wasn't the best performance Real Madrid fans could have asked from their team in their La Liga's debut this season, but the main objective was accomplished last night at the Santiago Bernabéu, as the Merengues wrapped up the 3 points against a well organized Cordoba side thanks to goals delivered by Karim Benzema and the inevitable Cristiano Ronaldo. The game was far from being a walk in the park for the hosts and, despite the win, Ancelotti certainly knows that his team still has a lot to improve in the weeks and months ahead. After the completion of the Spanish League's opening round, Real Madrid are now sitting in third place and only behind Celta de Vigo and Barcelona, as both sides are ahead due to a better goal-average.
Cristiano Ronaldo game photos in Real Madrid vs Cordoba
Real Madrid 2-0 Cordoba goals and highlights video:
All Cristiano Ronaldo actions vs Cordoba:
Even though the upset suffered against Atletico Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup happened just three days ago, Carlo Ancelotti preferred not to implement many changes in his team's lineup against Cordoba, except for a few switches in the back-four. Iker Casillas remained the first choice in the goalkeeper position, while in defense, Arbeloa took over for Carvajal, Marcelo was semt in for Fábio Coentrão and Pepe benched Varane to pair up with Sergio Ramos.
In the midfield and attacking areas, the Italian manager ended up making only one change, as he took off Xabi Alonso and played with Cristiano Ronaldo right from the start. James Rodríguez moved back on the field so the Portuguese star could play in his preferred position near the sideline and Luka Modric teamed up with Toni Kroos ahead of the defensive line. A few meters ahead, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema joined Ronaldo in the Merengues' attack.
It basically took 42 years for Cordoba to step again a pitch in the Spanish League first division and even though they lost in their opening round, they can definitely be proud of the quality of the display they delivered in such an emblematic stadium as it is the Santiago Bernabéu. Real Madrid is yet to convince since they beat Sevilla by 2-0 a few weeks ago on August 12 and last night's performance sure didn't help much in terms of allowing the fans to be more optimistic about the Merengues's chances of still winning all 4 competitions they'll be playing for this season: La Liga, Copa del Rey, UEFA Champions League and the FIFA Club World Cup.
Real Madrid got on the scoreboard around the first half of an hour, following a corner kick on the right that was taken by Bayern Munich's former midfielder, Toni Kroos. The German curled a lovely cross into the heart of the box and Karim Benzema met it in the air to head it past Juan Carlos for the first time in the evening. It was Benzema's first goal in the past 4 months, since the last time he had netted for the Merengues already dated back to April 23, back when he scored the winner against Bayern Munchen in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals.
That first goal didn't exactly propelled Real Madrid to a great exhibition in the remaining of the game, as most of the players kept looking very apathetic and a bit tired on the field. The final score was established late in the second half and only a few seconds before we entered stoppage time. Isco played a vital role in it, as he stole Cordoba the possession shortly after a throw-in pass was released deep in their own half and with a short touch he immediately left it over to Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese forward was happy to find himself with plenty of space to turn around and run forward a few meters with the ball close to his feet, which ultimately allowed him to release a powerful shot from nearly 30-yards out. His rocket only stopped at the back of the net and allowed Real Madrid to secure their first home win of the season.
A terrific goal from the former Manchester United player, who made sure he started another league campaign by scoring from a truly impressive long-range effort. Even though there have been a lot of talks lately about Cristiano Ronaldo's physical condition, the 29-year old didn't appear to have any problems on the pitch last night, and he even ended up playing the full 90 minutes in Real Madrid's 2-0 win over Cordoba. The European champions will now rest a few days before next Sunday, as they'll be visiting San Sebastián that day, in order to play against Real Sociedad in La Liga's round 2.
Real Madrid line-up vs Cordoba:
Goalkeeper: Iker Casillas
Defenders: Marcelo, Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Arbeloa
Midfielders: Modric, Kroos, James Rodríguez
Attackers: Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema.
| Match stats provided by www.ronaldo7.net
|
||
|---|---|---|
Real Madrid
|
vs
|
Cordoba
|
1 |
Goals |
0 |
14 |
Shots |
8 |
8 |
Shots on goal |
2 |
8 |
Corner kicks |
5 |
9 |
Fouls commited |
13 |
1 |
Yellow cards |
2 |
0 |
Red cards |
0 |
63% |
Ball possession |
37% |
Cristiano Ronaldo next game for Real Madrid will be against Real Sociedad, in their second fixture in La Liga, on August 31. You can watch Juventus live stream, Real Sociedad vs Real Madrid, Villarreal vs Barcelona, MK Dons vs Manchester United, Arsenal vs Besiktas, and Bayer Leverkusen vs Copenhagen, all matches provided from our live football pages.
Real Madrid next game:
Real Sociedad vs Real Madrid kick-off time (31-08-2014):
Jakarta (Indonesia) | GMT+7: 02:00
Spain (Madrid) | GMT+2: 21:00
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | GMT+1: 20:00
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | GMT-3: 16:00
New York (United States) | GMT-4: 15:00
Los Angeles (United States) | GMT-7 12:00
Beijing (China) | GMT+8: 03:00
Sources: ronaldo7.net / realmadrid.com / goal.com
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