Marco Asensio Salvages 2-2 Draw for Real Madrid Against Valencia with Brace

Real Madrid were held by Valencia at home during Sunday's 2017-18 La Liga action, as Marco Asensio scored twice in the 2-2 draw.

Asensio gave the hosts an early lead, but Carlos Soler took advantage of a defensive mistake to pull Valencia level before half-time. Geoffrey Kondogbia shocked the hosts after the break, but Madrid's budding star pulled his side level shortly after.

Here's a look at the two teams:

As shared by sports writer Sid Lowe, Madrid presented last season's La Liga trophy to the fans before kick-off:

It took just two minutes for the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu fans to get to their feet for the first time, as the official decided against awarding the home side a penalty after what appeared to be a handball from Ruben Vezo.

The visitors made a solid start to the match but were undone after just 10 minutes, as Asensio continued his sensational form with yet another goal from distance. Goalkeeper Neto had no chance, and sports writer Karl Matchett was impressed:

Casemiro was forced into a start at centre-back due to the defensive crisis at the Bernabeu, and his inexperience showed after 18 minutes. The Brazilian forgot to cover Soler completely, allowing him to easily tap home from close range.

Sports writer Sam Tighe couldn't help himself:

Madrid tried to hit back and found chances through Karim Benzema and Luka Modric, but both failed to find the target. Marcelo also tried his luck after a clever flick from Asensio but, like his team-mates, couldn't put Neto to work.

The Brazilian did have to make a stop on Benzema, who wasted two great chances at the end of the half to give his side the lead. Per La Liga writer Simon Harrison, he should have scored:

Mateo Kovacic replaced Isco at half-time, but Valencia made a solid start and perhaps should have gotten a penalty after just minutes, with Casemiro pulling down Jose Luis Gaya.

Neto denied Kovacic and Modric also threatened, but Madrid couldn't find their momentum early in the second half. When they did pick up the pace, Gareth Bale's header went over and Modric again ran into Neto.

Meanwhile, per Robbie Dunne of AS, Casemiro's struggles continued:

Simone Zaza powered a rare Valencia chance over the bar, and Keylor Navas had to make a diving save to deny Daniel Parejo. Madrid were playing with fire and got burned after 77 minutes, as Kondogbia netted a debut goal.

Per ESPN FC's Dermot Corrigan, the defence again looked sloppy for Los Blancos:

But just minutes later, Asensio added to his growing legend by scoring yet another spectacular goal, netting the equaliser. Neto was partly at fault by positioning himself behind his wall, but Asensio still curled the ball home beautifully.

Benzema missed a golden chance to grab a winner, sending a rebound wide, and Marcelo was furious when he wasn't awarded a penalty. Benzema's poor luck continued as he hit the post late, and despite tons of pressure, Los Che held on for a point.