Real Madrid vs. Celta Vigo: Score and Reaction from 2016 LaLiga Match
Real Madrid had to dig deep to win their second match of the 2016-17 LaLiga campaign, beating Celta Vigo 2-1 on Saturday at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu.
Both teams were evenly matched throughout the first half, and the pattern continued after the break. Alvaro Morata gave the hosts the lead on the hour mark, but Celta Vigo's Fabian Orellana hit back shortly after.
A late Real offensive saw Toni Kroos find a winner, as Los Blancos continued their perfect start to the season.
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As shared by Real's official Twitter account, the hosts still couldn't count on Cristiano Ronaldo, while starlet Marco Asensio once again made the starting XI:
Los Blancos started the match on the front foot, with Morata involved early, but Celta's defence closed down the passing lanes well, and manager Zinedine Zidane's troops quickly started to grow frustrated.
The first real chance of the match fell to Morata, who curled a shot wide after a swift counter-attack. Goalkeeper Sergio Alvarez fired a clearance right into the feet of Luka Modric, who immediately took aim but saw the stopper save his effort.
Theo Bongonda proved to be a real handful for the Real defence, and the Belgian also flashed his potential on the defensive side of the ball. He isolated Daniel Wass with a clever run, but Kiko Casilla easily dealt with his shot.
Bongonda wasted a glorious chance after 24 minutes. The Belgian went on a surging run into the Madrid box before firing a shot into the side netting, with John Guidetti waiting to tap home in case of a cross.
Real soon started to open things up, however, with Modric hitting the crossbar from just outside of the box. Mirror Football wished it had gone in:
Asensio nearly pushed home a great cross from Marcelo but made poor contact with the ball, and Gareth Bale, who had followed up on the play, couldn't reach it in time. Modric again tried his luck from distance, but this time, Alvarez was in his way.
Bale was the next man to go close, firing a header inches wide of the post, before Casemiro was involved in an incident with one of the Galician players, needlessly shoving his man to the ground.
Somehow, the Brazilian did not receive a booking for the clear shove, and LaLiga blogger Sergi Dominguez noticed the shove wasn't the only reason he stood out for the worse:
Celta finished the half on a high, and Dani Carvajal only just cleared a cross meant for Bongonda. Guidetti and Orellana also went close, and Bale fired a tame shot right into the hands of Alvarez.
Nemanja Radoja put Casilla to work with an ambitious effort from range, and a flick from Orellana came to nothing, as the half ended 0-0.
Football author Sid Lowe enjoyed the action:
Celta started the second half on the front foot, as a great passing move between Guidetti, Bongonda and Wass nearly unlocked the defence. Wass almost got a shot off moments later, but fortunately for Los Blancos, Raphael Varane closed him down in time.
Real took over soon after, and Asensio put Alvarez to work with a low drive.
Alvarez was on point to deny Bale, who aimed a curling shot for the top corner, and Marcelo tried to pick out Morata, who kept moving in an attempt to unlock the defence.
His hard work was rewarded one hour into the contest, as another poor clearance from Alvarez saw Asensio fire a shot on goal, and while the youngster couldn't beat the stopper, Morata converted the rebound.
Per Lowe, Celta were asking for trouble:
The goal seemed to liberate Los Blancos, with Asensio testing Alvarez after yet another poor clearance and Morata striking the post following a superb run from Kroos.
A second goal seemed inevitable, but instead, it fell on the other side of the pitch. Guidetti laid the ball off for Orellana, who was left open and lofted a fine strike past Casilla.
AS English noticed the defence did not close him down fast enough:
Zidane reacted by introducing James Rodriguez, and Los Blancos immediately went back on the attack. Bale nearly picked out Morata with a cross, missing his head by inches, and Rodriguez went down inside the penalty box screaming for a penalty after a battle with Facundo Roncaglia.
Marcelo also demanded a penalty after he went down under the pressure of Gustavo Cabral, but once again, the official was unmoved.
Real pushed Celta deep into their own half and peppered the box with crosses, but despite a few shaky moments, the Galicians stood firm. Kroos finally found the breakthrough with nine minutes left to play, slotting the ball past Alvarez from 20 yards out.
It was Celta's turn to attack again, and substitute Iago Aspas introduced some new energy, but a header from Bongonda failed to bother Casilla. Aspas nearly got his toe on a great ball over the top, and a series of corners produced some scary moments in the Real box.
But the Spanish giants stood their ground, playing out the win to remain perfect on the season.
Post-Match Reaction
As reported by Adrian Cortes of AS English, Zidane admitted his team needs to improve, but he's happy to have won the first two matches of the season:
"We didn't shine, that's true and there is always a chance that in some games we won't play like we want. That's a part of the work we have been doing. We can improve but I'm happy with how we have performed at this start of the season. We've won both of our games and the Supercopa. Now we are going to rest, even though there's the international fixtures.
"
Real Madrid will host Osasuna after the international break, while Vigo will play host to Atletico Madrid.
