Real Madrid staged a stunning comeback from two goals down to win 3-2 against Villarreal and go back on top of the La Liga table. Forwards Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale scored a goal apiece and substitute Alvaro Morata scored the winner to seal a 19-minute turnaround that kept them on course.
Real currently lead with 55 points, one ahead of Barcelona and three ahead of Sevilla, with a game in hand.
The first half of the match saw some stiff sparring from both teams, however all the five goals of the match came in the second half. The first half also saw the hosts’ goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo get substituted after he injured his knee as he tried to save a Karim Benzema shot from point-blank range.
The first was scored in the 50th when Villarreal’s Manu Trigueros scored one from inside the area to give the hosts the lead. Seven minutes later, Cedric Bakambu slipped a contentious goal past the keeper, which looked offside.
With a lead of two goals, the pressure was on Real as Barcelona had briefly taken the top spot on the table after their 2-1 win over Atletico Madrid earlier in the day. But Bale, who was marking his return from injury with his first start since November, scored a header soon after, in the 64th minute. Dani Carvajal set the Welsh forward with a cross and Bale didn’t miss.
Ronaldo levelled 10 minutes later with a penalty many considered to be controversial. The referee called Villarreal captain Bruno Soriano for deliberate handball after the ball seemed to ricochet off his arm. The decision was heatedly protested, however the chance was converted by the Portugal captain to get his team close to a crucial win.
The winner came in the 83rd minute when Morata headed a cross from Marcelo past the substitute goalkeeper Andres Fernandez to seal a memorable win for Zinedine Zidane’s side.
“You can clearly see that I couldn’t have done anything, the ball bounced up towards my arm and I can’t cut my arm off. It’s a bounce and it’s clear to me that it wasn’t a penalty,” Bruno was quoted as saying by Reuters. Villarreal coach Fran Escriba and substitute Roberto Soldado protested the decision and were were both sent off.
However, Madrid were happy to take the win, contentious or not. “In the end we come away with three points against an opponent that can make things difficult for you,” coach Zinedine Zidane said, “We’re happy to earn the win against a great side.”
“We refused to give in, we had a lot of pressure on us and thanks to everyone we fought and in the end we won,” said Real defender Marcelo said after the win.
With this win, Real have equalled Barcelona’s record from as far back as 1944 of 44 straight games scoring at least one goal.
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