Real Madrid vs. Granada: Score, Grades and Reaction from La Liga Game
Cristiano Ronaldo scored five goals as Real Madrid moved to within one point of Barcelona at the top of La Liga for at least a few hours with a crushing 9-1 victory at home to Granada at the Santiago Bernabeu on Easter Sunday.
Madrid's three most advanced players all found the net as the hosts ran riot to reignite their title bid. Gareth Bale opened the scoring before Ronaldo bagged a first-half hat-trick. Karim Benzema netted twice in the second half, either side of Ronaldo's fourth before Robert Ibanez scored a consolation for the visitors.
With Real coasting to victory, Granada captain Diego Mainz put into his own net in the 83rd minute to heap more misery on the visitors. Ronaldo headed in his fifth just before full-time to finish off the rout.
The win took Real up to 67 points through 29 games, one point behind Barcelona, who play at Celta Vigo later on Sunday. While Madrid's lead atop the table might not last through the day, their belief in their title challenge might just have found new life against Granada.
Meanwhile, Ronaldo has now scored 36 goals in the league this season, four more than Barca's Lionel Messi.
In addition to drawing satisfaction from such a lopsided scoreline, Real will have been pleased to welcome James Rodriguez back into the starting XI following an injury. Rodriguez's presence in the squad has coincided with Real's best performances of the season, and Sunday was no exception, as the Colombian shone in midfield.
Even so, the advantage in Spain's title race still belongs to Barcelona, who defeated Real Madrid 2-1 in El Clasico on March 22. But after netting nine goals—albeit against a poor Granada side in deep relegation trouble—Real must feel confident ahead of the run-in.
Up next is a trip to Rayo Vallecano on Wednesday, followed by a home match against Eibar next Saturday. Granada, who remained in 19th place following Sunday's defeat, will try to get back on track with a home match against Celta Vigo on Wednesday.
The final scoreline reflected Real's dominance of the match, but the hosts needed more than 20 minutes to find their first goal.
Real had a first sight of goal in the seventh minute, with Raphael Varane sending a raking ball over the top to Benzema at the back post. Benzema connected well with a volley from a tight angle, but Oier saved to keep Granada level.
Three minutes later, Bale had a chance as the ball bounced between Oier and a defender, allowing the Welshman to steal in and flip a shot off target. Then, in the 12th minute, Ronaldo fired into the side netting from a promising position on the left.
Granada had a rare opportunity in the 14th minute after Real Madrid gave away possession. The chance fell to Ibanez, who rolled a shot just wide of the far post.
Madrid's next chance came in the 22nd minute when Marcelo got to the byline on the left before crossing into the middle. Alvaro Arbeloa met the ball at the back post, but the defender tried to hit it with the outside of his boot and redirected off target from close range.
It turned out not to matter. In the 25th minute, Bale finally scored the game's first goal. The chance came from a mistake, with Mainz sliding the ball directly into Bale's path. From there, the Welshman then rounded Oier and finished into an empty net.
With the deadlock broken, the goals began to flow.
Ronaldo grabbed Real's second in the 30th minute. Benzema chested down a Toni Kroos free-kick inside the box but Granada managed to intercept. An attempted clearance went only as far as Rodriguez, who laid off for Ronaldo on the left. The Portuguese superstar wasn't going to miss from there, lashing his shot into the net at the far post.
Neither Real nor Ronaldo were anywhere close to finished for the first half. Ronaldo netted his second of the day in the 36th minute, combining with Marcelo down the left flank before the Brazilian left-back crossed into the middle. Oier pushed the ball into the air but only as far as Ronaldo, who bounced in a volleyed finish for 3-0.
Ronaldo had his hat-trick just two minutes later. Cutting in from the left, he pounded a powerful shot on target from the edge of the box, but the ball flew too close to Oier. The Granada goalkeeper seemed set to make the save but instead only helped the ball on its way into the net.
Trailing by four goals, Granada needed a lifeline. It almost arrived in the 43rd minute, when Youssef El-Arabi curled a rasping effort off the underside of the bar from long distance.
Shortly after the half-time break, Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas made his first save, keeping out Ruben Rochina's dipping strike from distance.
But that was only a brief break from the usual flow of the action. Before long, Real Madrid had resumed the rout.
Benzema put his name on the scoresheet in the 52nd minute, using his first touch to chest down a Rodriguez corner before powering in a volley with the outside of his foot. Two minutes later, Ronaldo added his fourth, tapping in at the far post after Bale unselfishly laid off Marcelo's long ball over the top.
Benzema then made it 7-0 in the 56th minute with a deflected shot from a tight angle on the right.
The game had long since ceased to be a contest. With more than 30 minutes left in the match, Real only had to canter to victory.
In the 65th minute, Bale smashed a free-kick just wide from 35 yards. Five minutes later, Ronaldo bounced a shot wide of the target following Bale's cutback from the byline.
Granada pulled a goal back in the 74th minute through Ibanez. Running onto a fine through pass, Ibanez slipped behind Sergio Ramos, beat Arbeloa and finished past Casillas to give the visitors some measure of consolation.
Back at the other end, Oier pushed Bale's high shot over the bar in the 78th minute as Real continued to attack. The hosts' eighth goal came in the 83rd minute, when Mainz turned a Luka Modric cross into his own net. There was still time for Ronaldo to score his fifth, a header, one minute before the 90 were up.
Grades
| Iker Casillas | 6.8 |
| Alvaro Arbeloa | 7.7 |
| Raphael Varane | 7.5 |
| Sergio Ramos | 7.0 |
| Marcelo | 8.2 |
| Luka Modric | 8.3 |
| Toni Kroos | 8.4 |
| James Rodriguez | 9.1 |
| Gareth Bale | 9.7 |
| Karim Benzema | 10.0 |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | 10.0 |
| Asier Illarramendi (for Kroos, 57') | 6.6 |
| Jese (for Rodriguez, 61') | 6.1 |
| Javier Hernandez (for Benzema, 61') | 6.3 |
| Oier | 1.9 |
| Dimitri Foulquier | 5.8 |
| Babin | 5.4 |
| Diego Mainz | 3.8 |
| Juan Carlos | 5.1 |
| Manuel Iturra | 5.1 |
| Fran Rico | 5.9 |
| Robert Ibanez | 6.6 |
| Ruben Rochina | 6.2 |
| Daniel Candeias | 6.0 |
| Youssef El-Arabi | 6.9 |
| Piti (for Rochina, 53') | 5.9 |
| Eddy (for Rico, 57') | 6.4 |
| Jeison Murillo (for Babin, 61') | 5.8 |
Reaction
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti, via ESPN FC:
"The feeling is all positive, the team is good physically. We must highlight how the team has returned to playing as we want. It was important to win, and to play well, and we have done that.
The objectives are very close now, and all the players understand that by giving their all the team can be at its best. But this was just one game and we have another important game on Wednesday, and be fully focused then, as we were today. Last year we were not as good physically as we are now.
"
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