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Copa del Rey 2019: Quarter-Final Leg 1 Results and Reaction
January 24, 2019
Sergio Ramos scored twice as Real Madrid beat Girona 4-2 at the Santiago Bernabeu on Thursday night in the first leg of their Copa del Rey quarter-final.
Lucas Vazquez and Karim Benzema were also on target to put Los Blancos in a strong position ahead of the return leg at the Estadi Montilivi in a week's time.
Thursday's other quarter-final clash saw Real Betis snatch a draw at Espanyol. The hosts took the lead in the first half through Borja Iglesias, but Tonny Sanabria levelled it late on for Quique Setien's men.
Copa del Rey Quarter-Final 1st Leg Results
Getafe 1-0 Valencia
Sevilla 2-0 Barcelona
Espanyol 1-1 Real Betis
Real Madrid 4-2 Girona
Thursday Recap
Real Madrid had to work hard to see off Girona, but two late goals put them in a commanding position in the tie.
Girona went ahead at the Bernabeu after just seven minutes through Choco Lozano. Raul Garcia crossed for the striker to volley past goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.
Their lead lasted a little more than 10 minutes, as Real Madrid responded quickly. Alvaro Odriozola was the creator, crossing for Vazquez to slot home.
Real Madrid then went ahead minutes before the break from the penalty spot. Vinicius Jr. was brought down by Lozano, and Ramos made no mistake from the spot:
Girona got back on level terms with a penalty of their own after Marcos Llorente was penalised for handball. Alex Granell smashed home his spot-kick to make it 2-2 with around 20 minutes remaining.
However, Real Madrid restored their lead through Ramos, before Benzema added some gloss to the scoreline in an encouraging performance:
A late equaliser from Sanabria means Real Betis have the edge on Espanyol ahead of the second leg of their quarter-final at the Benito Villamarin Stadium on Wednesday.
The two teams played at an entertaining match, with Espanyol taking the lead through Iglesias just before the half-hour mark. The 26-year-old reacted quickest to latch on to a loose ball in the box and slot home his 12th goal of the season.
Real Betis responded well to going behind but had to wait until the 80th minute to get their equaliser. A driving run from Willian Carvalho saw the midfielder pick out Sergio Leon on the left, and he crossed for Sanabria to slide home at the far post.