Real Madrid returned to winning ways in spectacular fashion as they demolished Real Betis 6-1 in La Liga on Saturday.
Marcelo was back in the Madrid XI after he shook off a calf injury, but there was no James Rodriguez due to a similar problem, so Mateo Kovacic continued in the middle of the park.
It didn’t take long for Los Blancos to take the lead as a free kick met the head of an unmarked Raphael Varane in the Betis penalty area, which the defender simply guided home.
Soon after, Dani Carvajal’s back-heel superbly played in the influential Isco for a cross, but despite being picked out at the back post and with the goal at his mercy, Ronaldo volleyed over.
Gareth Bale then came crashing into the picture from the right via a diving header, but former Madrid goalkeeper Antonio Adan made a fine, instinctive stop to deny the Welshman before smothering the rebound.
Ruben Castro, meanwhile, was responsible for Betis’ first sight of goal some 30 minutes into the match, when the striker made a yard for himself before bending a shot just over Keylor Navas. Moments before that, Cristiano Piccini darted in from the right and curled a shot inches over.
Nonetheless, that was as good as it got for Betis as Karim Benzema coolly finished off Toni Kroos’ threaded assist for his sixth straight goal against the Andalusians.
Marcelo looked to score Madrid’s third as he was cleverly slipped in by Isco through the left and into the box, but Adan parried away the full-back’s cross-cum-shot.
Although appearing to be offside and guilty of handballing when Benzema’s deflected, slide-rule pass fell his way, however, Marcelo made no mistake with his scuffed, volleyed finish.
A breathtaking breakaway for Madrid just before half-time saw Mateo Kovacic spread the ball to Ronaldo, who drilled towards the far post for Pepe, the defender in turn cutting back for Isco to tuck away.
Having taken a 4-0 lead into the second half, Madrid understandably eased off and were given a couple of early warning signgs. Joaquin firstly chipped a cross into the box at the byline, over the onrushing Navas, but Castro’s header was blocked and cleared.
Pepe’s pass was then intercepted by Jonas Martin, who instigated a one-touch move, flicking onto Alvaro Cejudo via Joaquin. The winger then picked his spot past Navas for what was ultimately a consolation strike as Isco consequently capped off his best performance of the season with a second goal, curling a left-footed shot past Adan from Ronaldo’s right-wing cross.
Adding to Betis’ consolation was the fact they limited Madrid to single digits as Adan made two more important saves, pushing away Ronaldo’s cross on the deck with a fingertip, before getting a hand to the No 7’s thunderous header from point-blank range.
The night was not complete without Ronaldo writing his name onto the scoresheet as he toepoked the ball into the bottom-left corner of Adan’s goal from the edge of the area for 6-1 and game over.
Real Betis 1-6 Real Madrid
Cejudo 55 (RB) Varane 4, Benzema 31, Marcelo 39, Isco 45, 62, Ronaldo 78 (RM)
Real Betis: Adan; Piccini, Mandi, Pezzella, Durmisi; Petros, Martin (Ceballos 67), Brasanac (Zozulya 46); Joaquin, Castro, Alegria (Cejudo 46)
Real Madrid: Navas; Carvajal, Varane, Pepe, Marcelo; Isco, Kroos, Kovacic (Vazquez 65); Bale (Asensio 79), Benzema (Morata 75), Ronaldo
Referee: Gil Manzano
