On Sunday real Madrid had a very difficult match against a great team like Bilbao who can be a real danger for every top team and managed everything greatly. For one moment Real were in the first place thanks to Nacho's winner and the great performance of Osasuna which made Atletico Madrid suffer until the end. But it did not finish how they wanted. However, this fact does not decrease the value of this victory in any way. Athletic Bilbao has always been a tough opponent and the team showed that they have a great character and can take great results in difficult conditions when the pressure is very high.
Real Madrid got the win at San Mamés, but LaLiga will be decided on the final matchday. Only Zidane's team and Atlético, currently two points ahead of Real Madrid, can be crowned league champions next Saturday. Zidane’s boys will host Villarreal, whilst Atlético visit Valladolid. On the other side Barcelona disappointed again conceding two goals from Celta Vigo and getting out of the race for La Liga with one week to go.
Real started the game with the same line up as the previous match with only one change: Odriozola was a starter instead of Marvin. Real’s game was based on possession and besides that ZIdane’s team was also effective at creating goalscoring opportunities from set-pieces. However they had to deal with Bilbao’s aggressive style and their solidity. The first chance of the match in Bilbao fell to Real Madrid as Modrić whipped in an inswinging cross that Unai Simón collected, before the arrival of Benzema in the 27th minute. Odriozola's cross from the right struck Morcillo's elbow inside the area two minutes later, but the referee didn't point to the spot after consulting VAR.
The final chance before the break went Athletic’s way as Álex Berenguer’s direct free-kick on 43’ narrowly missed the target. The madridistas looked brighter after the interval and began to pose a threat on the hosts’ goals. In the 48th minute, Militão met Modrić’s corner but his headed effort sailed over the bar. Nine minutes later, Unai Simón rescued the home side with a fine diving save following a rasping effort from Modrić from the edge of the area.
It now looked as if it was only a matter of time before Madrid would break the deadlock and another Modrić free kick saw Casemiro’s towering header crash back off the crossbar in the 66th minute. However, the visitors did make the deserved breakthrough three minutes later following yet another corner. The ball fell out to Casemiro, whose cross was fired home by Nacho. From that moment on, Real Madrid managed the game well and held on to the lead, affording Athletic just one chance as Vesga’s header whistled wide of the upright in the 83rd minute. The hosts were reduced to 10 men on 89’, when Raúl García was shown a straight red. This result means that the LaLiga title race will go right down to the last day.
Nacho’s words after the match: "Obviously we wanted to win, and for Atletico to drop points, but there's a long way to go still. They came back to win at the death and that shows things aren't easy. We just need to concentrate on ourselves and see how it goes next time out [against Villarreal next Sunday]. "You can see how tough it was for them to win. In the game of football anything can happen, we need to fight until the last, that's our job. It's a tough place to come and win. Bilbao give up few chances, but we were great in defense. It was more difficult up top, but we were compact and we got the three points which is all that matters".
Zidane's side are on a 17-game unbeaten run in LaLiga, their best streak in a single campaign during his two stints in charge.
Player ratings:
Starting XI:
Thibaut Courtois — 7: Made himself big multiple times. Will be happy with the work of Nacho and Militão in front of him. Finished with one save and a low 77 per cent pass completion rate. Earns another clean sheet.
Alvaro Odriozola — 6.7y5: Earned the start with Marvin Park unavailable and had a decent showing. Offered himself up in the attack but that often left across of space for the hosts o exploit (give and take here). Played the full match which was good. Finished with 97 per cent pass completion and one key pass.
Eder Militão — 7: Another match that sees him cement himself as a future staple for Madrid’s backline. Read any threats and wasn’t afraid to put his body on the line to stop Athletic Bilbao. Finished with a 90 per cent pass completion rate, one shot, two aerials won.
Nacho — 7.5: Who said Nacho was finished? Embodied the Madrid spirit here by scoring the winning goal with his knee. Why he was so far up we will never know but does it matter? Lacked a bit defensively though. Finished with two shots and a 95 per cent pass completion rate.
Miguel Gutiérrez — 7.5: Castilla man earned the start over Marcelo which says a lot. Had a good showing and also played the entire match. One of the better defensive performances statistically. Finished with four dribbles, four aerials won, one key pass and two tackles.
Casemiro — 8: Another workhorse performance from Casemiro, what else is new? Set up Nacho for the winner. Showed good awareness to help Madrid move forward and even hit the woodwork himself. Finished with one shot, one dribble, two key passes and one tackle.
Fede Valverde — 7.75: Was one of the players on the pitch pushing Madrid forward all match. Persistence was key tonight. Covered almost every inch of ground and played the full 90 as well which is great to see. Finished with one shot, 94 per cent pass completion rate, one dribble, one aerial won and two tackles.
Luka Modric — 8.5: Nacho might be the man of the match but without Toni Kroos, Modric pulled the strings in the midfield alone tonight and carried the team. Finished with two shots, 94 per cent pass completion, one aerial won, four key passes, three tackles. Try 35 years young.
Rodrygo — 6.25: Very quiet in the time he was on the pitch tonight making only a few darting runs. Wasn’t as influential as he needed to be. Finished with one shot, 94 per cent pass completion rate, one dribble and one tackle. Subbed after 77 minutes.
Karim Benzema — 7.25: The main focal point in attack for Real Madrid and did his best alongside lacklustre wingers up top. Managed to act as a screen for Nachos goal (funny enough). Finished with two shots, two dribbles and one aerial won.
Vini Jr. — 6.5: Once again had a sub-par performance tonight. Couldn’t spark enough creativity alongside Benzema and Rodrygo. Finished with one shot, one key pass and four dribbles. Subbed after 59 minutes.
Substitutes:
Marco Asensio — 6: Came on for Vini but didn’t offer much as a substitute himself. Feels like he's flip-flopping between being at his best or at his worse.
Eden Hazard — 6: Played the final 13 minutes but couldn’t make a difference to help Madrid secure the win. Finished with one dribble.
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