Real Madrid vs. Villarreal: Score, Reaction from 2016 La Liga Match

Real Madrid cruised to a 3-0 win over Villarreal at the Santiago Bernabeu during Wednesday’s La Liga action, keeping pace with rivals Barcelona and Atletico Madrid in the race for the Spanish title.

Karim Benzema gave the hosts the lead shortly before half-time, and Lucas Vazquez doubled their advantage midway through the second half. Luka Modric made it 3-0 shortly after, as Real dominated the Yellow Submarine from start to finish and deservedly grabbed the win.       

The result means Los Blancos still sit one point behind Barcelona and Atletico in the title chase.

As shared by Real’s official Twitter account, both James Rodriguez and Isco started on the bench for Los Blancos, while there was no sign of Gareth Bale:

Here’s our starting line-up for tonight’s match against Villarreal! ????⚽✅#RMLiga #HalaMadrid pic.twitter.com/f3X7H3qSzz

— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadriden) April 20, 2016

Real started the contest one point behind Barcelona and Atletico Madrid in the standings, and with both of those teams winning in Week 34, Los Blancos had no choice but to follow suit.

Villarreal have a reputation for being open and aggressive, even against the best teams in Spain, and the Yellow Submarine entered the match with momentum on their side after their strong showing in the UEFA Europa League.

Even at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, the visitors showed they weren’t afraid to play their brand of football, which led to an entertaining first half. Keylor Navas was the first goalkeeper to touch the ball after Villarreal tried to unleash in-form striker Cedric Bakambu.

Denis Suarez also looked lively early. But Real were the better team, and Benzema tested Sergio Asenjo for the first time with a hard shot from 16 yards out. Cristiano Ronaldo was next, drawing a fine stop from Asenjo at the near post.

Kieran Canning of Agence …

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