Celta Vigo vs. Real Madrid: Score and Reaction from 2015 La Liga Match

Real Madrid have gone top in La Liga after beating Celta Vigo 3-1. Goals from Cristiano Ronaldo, Danilo and a stoppage-time effort from Marcelo ensured a vital three points for Rafa Benitez's team away from the Santiago Bernabeu.

Nolito notched a late consolation to make things interesting for Celta Vigo, who were reduced to 10 men in the second half after centre-back Gustavo Cabral received two yellow cards in a matter of seconds. The hosts suffered their first league defeat of the season.

La Liga's two highest-scoring teams entering this game played out an entertaining contest. Madrid were pacy, creative and ruthlessly efficient on the counter in the first half. Meanwhile, Celta fashioned a host of excellent chances to keep Keylor Navas busy all day.

Forced to juggle his squad due to injuries, Los Blancos gaffer Benitez made several changes. In the absence of Ronaldo's regular strike partners, Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale, Benitez placed youngsters Jese and winger Lucas Vazquez around his talisman.

Madrid's official Twitter feed provided the full starting 11, which also featured underrated Brazilian enforcer Casemiro at the heart of midfield:

Meanwhile, Celta boss Eduardo Berizzo countered with former Liverpool misfit Iago Aspas leading the line, flanked by the crafty and dangerous Nolito. ESPN's Dermot Corrigan detailed the full lineup:

It was Benitez who introduced the game's notable tactical tweak. With injuries dictating his team, he moved Ronaldo off the left flank:

Newly minted centre-forward Ronaldo headed narrowly wide from an early corner. Madrid were passing with pace and efficiency during the initial stages, attempting to take the sting out of the home side and quiet the crowd.

But Ronaldo didn't have to wait long for a decisive contribution. He opened the scoring in the eighth minute after Casemiro muscled his way back onto the ball in midfield. He slipped a pass to Vazquez, who chipped a cross Ronaldo's way with predictable results.

The strike continued Ronaldo's excellent scoring run against Celta, according to WhoScored.com:

By supplying the cross, Vazquez maintained his prolific creative output in Spain's top flight this season, as noted by OptaJose:

Madrid's fast start had caught the hosts cold. Benitez's men dominated the ball, something that kept Celta's danger men quiet:

But Ronaldo's finish sparked the Vigo attack back into life. Aspas should have buried a close-range header from a corner. Then Chilean midfielder Fabian Orellana saw a fine effort turned away by a smart stop from the impressive Navas.

The save proved to be a key moment, as Madrid soon doubled their lead. Nice work in midfield fed the ball to Jese, and the fleet-footed young wide forward found raiding full-back Danilo with a precise pass. The former Porto man had stolen a march on a cat-napping Nolito and rounded off a classy team goal.

Lalo R. Villar/Associated Press

With a two-goal cushion, Los Merengues settled into control-and-contain mode. They kept a solid shape, with Casemiro performing a key role at the base of midfield, while Modric looked as though he'd never waste a pass.

But for all their apparent stability, Real still needed Navas to be at his best. He clawed away an Aspas shot after some excellent work from the flanks by Nolito.

The Costa Rica stopper wasn't done yet, though. He tipped over a bullet header as Celta staged a frenetic late rally before the break.

As Corrigan noted, the home side applied plenty of pressure, but Madrid was the more clinical:

That pressure continued after the break. Orellana ballooned an excellent chance over the bar, while Nolito saw a seemingly certain goal chalked off by Marcelo's goal-line heroics.

In between those chances, Cabral was sent off for picking up a pair of yellow cards in quick succession. The second came when the 30-year-old Argentinian defender protested a refereeing decision. 

But that didn't stop Celta from making things mighty interesting late on. Nolito struck a wonder strike to reduce the gap, moments before John Guidetti missed a gift of a chance to equalise.

Nolito remains on a terrific scoring run this season:

Madrid had maybe become too cautious. Their team was now crammed with defenders, all playing several yards behind a terribly isolated Ronaldo.

But with Celta committing everything forward in search of an equaliser, Marcelo got behind them and deftly finished the game with virtually the last kick.

Post-Match Reaction

Benitez praised his team's character to earn three tough points away from home:

He also referenced how well his squad coped with its hefty injury list. Benitez rightly believes the quality and depth at his disposal can give Madrid a real edge in the hunt for major trophies this season:

But the Los Merengues chief did make clear his belief that playing on Saturday after UEFA Champions League duty on Wednesday hardly helps his team's preparation:

The short turnaround between games only makes this result more impressive.

Speaking of being impressed, Nolito highlighted his belief Navas had been the key figure in the game:

This performance was indeed a timely reminder of Navas' class. He seemed destined for the bench when Madrid threw themselves at Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea this summer. But few stoppers in Europe are playing as well as Navas at the moment.

Both teams will now have a close eye on Sunday's games. Madrid will wait to see if Barcelona can draw level at the top ahead of the season's first Clasico. A home game with Eibar makes Barca a good bet to match Los Blancos on 21 points.

As for Celta, Atletico Madrid and Villarreal can move level on points with wins against Valencia and Las Palmas, respectively, making the battle for a top-four spot very intense.