Barcelona, October 23 (BNA): Karim Benzema proudly presented the Golden Ball award to the fans at the Santiago Bernabeu, then sat behind Real Madrid, who beat Seville 3-1 and consolidated his progress in the Spanish League.
Benzema was left out of the match when the club said he was suffering from muscle fatigue. And it seems that the striker, who won the prestigious individual award for football on Monday, is taking great care to avoid the risk of any injury that could jeopardize his participation with the French national team in the World Cup in Qatar, which begins in less than a month.
Vinicius Junior has set up two goals for Madrid as the Brazilian winger continues to excel with or without Benzema playing alongside him, according to the Associated Press.
Real Madrid continued their unbeaten streak to 16 games since the start of the season in all competitions and increased their lead in the lead to six points over Barcelona, who face Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.
Luka Modric and former Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane, the two former Ballon d’Or winners, presented Benzema with his award at a pre-match gala. The Real Madrid striker raised him high to the applause of the fans, who went out to celebrate the match, amid heavy rain in the Spanish capital.
Modric then proceeded to ensure Madrid did not miss out on Benzema’s goals, scoring from a Vinicius assist to give Real Madrid the lead five minutes into the match. Vinicius broke through a poor pass from Gonzalo Montiel near the Seville area, attacked the trailing defenders, and found Modric alone at the far post to cash in.
While Vinicius missed an opportunity to add to the lead in the 44th minute – when he tried to pass goalkeeper Yassine Bounou instead of shooting from close range – Sevilla were toothless with midfielder Isco Alarcón up front as the ‘lying nine’.
Sevilla had their share of possession but had no strikers in the penalty area to feed them. At 45, Jesus Navas managed to make his first save from Thibaut Courtois, who came back after missing six matches due to his pain.
However, Jorge Sampaoli’s plan began to emerge in the second half when more Sevilla midfielders, including Oliver Torres and Ivan Rakitic, and playmakers like Isco, dominated for half an hour.
Montell made up for his mistake by owning the boot and using the outside of his boot to pass a ball across Madrid’s well-positioned defense to counter Erik Lamela’s superb run. Lamela also showed his skill by sending a ball around Courtois from a narrow angle with the tip of his boot to equalize in the 54th minute.
Isco then hit the side netting and Montell set up Lamela to blast the ball wide in the 60th minute.
But Carlo Ancelotti sent strong in attack and a counter-attack by substitute Marco Asensio led to Vinicius’ equaliser in Bono before he released substitute Luas Vazquez to hit the empty net in the 79th minute.
“Today I want to highlight the work of Vinicius,” Ancelotti said. “He provided assists for his teammates to practically score in an empty net. He should be delighted. Those assists deserve more than just scoring goals. He showed a lot of generosity.”
Federico Valverde added a stunning third goal from long range two minutes later to put the score beyond any doubt with the midfielder’s seventh goal in all competitions this season. His powerful shot passed over Bono and hit the net inside the top of the post.
It was Sevilla’s first loss in four matches since Sampaoli replaced Julen Lopetegui. Seville came to fourteenth place.
“We played against an opponent that makes you pay even the slightest mistake,” Lamela said. “We had an extended period when we played well, but it was not enough. We are still adapting to a new coach, to adapt to his new ideas, and we need time.”
end of the race
Real Sociedad missed a chance to draw Barcelona on points after ending their eight-game unbeaten streak across all competitions in Valladolid.
A Sergio Leon goal in the 16th minute and some solid defense in the pouring rain at Jose Zorrilla gave Valladolid a 1-0 victory.
Mallorca Rally
Mallorca fought with two goals to one at its host Valencia, after Edinson Cavani put the hosts in the lead with a penalty kick to score his fourth goal in three matches.
Vedat Marqui, who missed two games while suspended, scored his fifth goal of the season with a penalty kick. Former Valencia striker Lee Kang-in completed the comeback in the 83rd minute.
Rayo Road
Rayo Vallecano defender Florian Legon scored two goals to lead their 5-1 defeat of Cadiz’s 10 players, with all five goals coming after Issa Carslin was sent off with a direct red card near the end of the first half.