Real Madrid went back to the top of the La Liga standings on Saturday after defeating Osasuna 4-0 with to a brace from Jude Bellingham, who also maintained his lethal form.
Girona’s victory against Cadiz, which was decided by a score of 1-0, gave the Catalan minnows a one-point lead for a brief period of time; however, Madrid easily won at the Santiago Bernabeu to retake first place, with goals coming from Vinicius Junior, Joselu, and others.
Once again, the England international Bellingham was at his unstoppable best in the last third of the game. Bellingham is the leading scorer in the division with eight goals.
The former Borussia Dortmund player is now playing in a more offensive position behind two centre attackers thanks to the coaching of Carlo Ancelotti, who is the coach of Real Madrid. This change has been quite successful.
The midfielder now has 10 goals in all competitions after scoring a fantastic solo goal against Napoli in the Champions League in midweek and adding two more against Osasuna. In total, the midfielder has made 10 appearances.
Ancelotti started defensive midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni with Antonio Rudiger at the heart of the Bayern Munich defence since David Alaba and Eder Militao were both injured, and Nacho was banned for his reckless challenge against Girona the previous weekend.
Tchouameni, on the other hand, had a very uneventful day at the back as Madrid cruised to victory, ensuring that they will maintain their leadership position despite the next international break.
After nine minutes of play, Madrid finally broke the stalemate when Luka Modric, who was getting a start for the first time in a very long time, sent the ball to Dani Carvajal, who then passed it on to Bellingham in a really nice manner.
After charging into the penalty area, the midfielder created some space for himself before unleashing a powerful shot that gave the custodian, Sergio Herrera, very little to work with.
Vinicius took a shot that went just wide when he should have probably passed the ball to Bellingham, and Madrid’s custodian Kepa Arrizabalaga was reduced to little more than a spectator at the other end.
Shortly before the break, Osasuna did have one promising opportunity, but Ante Budimir’s shot went high and wide of the goal after Ruben Pena had set him up in a strong position.
In the 55th minute, Bellingham originated and completed Madrid’s second goal. He darted forward and played a one-two with Fede Valverde before sweeping home, exhibiting the blend of elegance and energy for which he is famed.
When Valverde sent Vinicius sprinting through on goal, the Brazilian skillfully rounded custodian Herrera and tapped in the rebound to extend Madrid’s lead. Vinicius’s goal gave Madrid a 2-0 advantage.
The winger then switched roles and became the provider for the fourth goal, setting up striker Joselu, who was on loan from another team, to score for his fifth goal in the league in his past six games.
After David Garcia was called for handball and gave up a penalty, the sixth should have been awarded, but Herrera made a stop on Joselu’s shot that was sent down the centre.
The goalie for Osasuna has a stellar record when it comes to saving penalty kicks, including a game in which he turned away two attempts from former Madrid attacker Karim Benzema.
Even though Joselu shot wide, Real Madrid were still able to enjoy their most decisive victory of the season to that point despite the missed opportunity.