La Liga: Madrid consolidates lead at top

Benzema scored one goal and set up another to lead Madrid to beating Alaves 2-0 on Friday and restoring a four-point lead over Barcelona in the Spanish league with only three rounds left.

Benzema scored a penalty kick in the 11th minute and assisted Marco Asensio in the 50th to ensure an eighth straight victory since La Liga resumed play after stopping for three months due to the pandemic. Benzema has four goals during the winning streak and provided a superb assist for Casemiro to score in a 1-0 win at Espanyol three rounds ago.

Madrid will finish the season with matches against Granada, Villarreal, and Leganes. Barcelona has games against Valladolid, Osasuna, and Alaves before the competition concludes on July 19. Madrid holds the tiebreaker on head-to-head goals if they finish level on points.

Still, Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane refused to say the league was Madrid’s to lose. “Anything can happen until this is over,” Zidane said. “It is a good result and how we have three to go.”

Zidane had to experiment in defence with Sergio Ramos and Dani Carvajal serving suspensions and Marcelo and Nacho Fernandez injured. While the left side was held down by the experienced Raphael Varane and sometimes starter Ferland Mendy, the right side went to der Milito in just his ninth league start of the campaign and Lucas Vazquez, a forward. The new-look defence kept a fifth clean sheet in a row for Madrid.

Vazquez’s inexperience in defence showed three minutes into the match when Edgar Mendez dribbled past him and sent a cross to the second post, where Joselu Sanmartin headed the ball off the bar. Casemiro then had to block a follow-up header of the rebound by Lucas Perez.

“We deserved to have scored that early goal,” new Alaves coach Juan Mueiz said. “You can’t miss those kinds of opportunities and still have much of a chance of pulling out the match. (Against Madrid) you have to take advantage of the scant opportunities you get.”

Mendy, who may play more after Marcelo was sidelined with a muscle injury earlier Friday, cued Madrid’s first goal. He broke into the area and was tripped by Ximo Navarro from a clumsy tackle attempt. With Ramos, Madrid’s regular penalty taker, unavailable, Benzema converted. His 18th league goal of the season is second only to Messi’s 22.

Alaves tried to rally through Oliver Burke. The Scottish forward drew a save from Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois in the 27th.

Minutes later he dribbled past Vazquez and Milito, only to see Sanmartin scuff his dangerous pass back to the center of the area.

Madrid took full control just after halftime when Benzema broke Alaves’ offside trap to reach Rodrygo’s through-ball. Benzema drew Alaves goalie Roberto Jimenez to him and laid off for Asensio to tap into the open net. A video review had to overturn the initial decision that Benzema was offside.