The Real Madrid quickly made use of their home advantage at the Santiago Bernabeu against Barcelona. It was only the 12th minute of the first half when the team, led by Carlo Ancelotti, opened the scoring with a great goal from Karim Benzema. The 'albo' striker finished off a great counterattack, causing the sports arena in the Spanish capital to erupt.
It was Toni Kroos who fought vehemently for a ball in the center of the field. The German player assisted Vinicius Junior, who applied speed down the left flank before taking a powerful shot that would be blocked by Ter Stegen. Unfortunately for the interests of the blue and red goalkeeper, the ball fell to 'Gato', who calmly finished it off, inflating the nets.
This is the fourth goal by the French forward in the league. He had previously scored against Celta de Vigo and Espanyol (brace). He had also scored in the UEFA Super Cup against Eintracht Frankfurt. In the Champions League, he has not yet found the back of the net.
Real Madrid vs Barcelona: What lies ahead for both teams
After this match, the 'merengues' will face Elche this Wednesday as visitors, in a new round of the domestic championship. It is presumed that the coaching staff will make modifications to the starting eleven to give rest to their players. It has been a tough string of matches between LaLiga and the Champions League lately. To make matters worse, on Saturday the 22nd, Real Madrid will have another tough match against Sevilla.
Not until the 25th of this month will the Madridistas compete in Europe again, when they visit RB Leipzig in Germany for the fifth matchday of the group stage of the Champions League. It will be a mere formality for the Spaniards, as they have already secured their place in the round of 16 of the tournament.
On the other hand, the blaugrana squad will play against Villarreal this Thursday. It will be a tough test before the weekend match against the always complicated Athletic Club de Bilbao. Barcelona will play for the Champions League on the 26th when they host Bayern Munich at Camp Nou, in a match where they must win at all costs and hope for a slip-up from Inter to dream of advancing to the next stage.
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