Real Madrid faced
Alcoyano tonight for the first leg of the Copa del Rey competition, leaving El
Collao with a solid 4-1 victory. The
starting lineup was littered with faces we have not seen the likes of on pitch
often these days, including Adán, Raphael Varane, Ricardo Carvalho, Nacho
Fernandez, Álvaro Morata, and Álex. In
spite of their lack of playtime these days, it came as no surprise that los Blancos did well to keep Alcoyano at
bay.
The goalfest began by way
of Karim Benzema, who headed one in for the visiting side into the bottom left corner
at the 21' minute mark. Minutes later at
the 35' minute mark, Brazil's Kaká doubled Real Madrid's lead with a
left-footed shot from outside the box to the bottom right corner. At his assistance was none other than
Benzema. Álex attempted a through ball
two minutes later, only for José Callejón to be caught offside.
It's not to say that
Alcoyano did not have their moments of glory in the half. Julio de Dios and Jhon Mosquera had their
attempts throughout the first 45, giving the home side something to be proud of
and los Blancos to be wary of. The half ended 2-0 in favor of los Blancos.
After descanso, both teams saw changes to
their lineups. The fresh pair of legs on
pitch proved fruitful for Alcoyano, the home team becoming more aggressive with
their tactics, pressuring our men in white.
José Rodríguez, who had come in for Álex at the start of the half,
scored Madrid's third of the evening.
Mind you, this was Rodríguez's first team debut with los Blancos, and what more can one ask
for in their debut other than a goal? The
17-year-old scored with a right-footed shot from the left to the top right
corner. Again at the assist was
Benzema. The Frenchman certainly wanted
that MotM title, didn't he?
It seemed that way come
the 88' minute mark when he bagged a brace and Madrid's fourth of evening with
a right-footed shot to the bottom left corner.
And since he was too busy scoring, it would be Morata at the assist. I think we are all in agreement when I say
that Benzema most certainly deserves that Man of the Match title, no?
As for Alcoyano, the team
endured and played with such vigor until the final whistle. Javi Lara scored Alcoyano's first and only
goal of evening from a free kick at the 77', with a right-footed shot to the
bottom left corner. In spite of the fact
the home team was behind, they played with such enthusiasm and intensity that
everyone – everyone – had something
to be proud of. José Mourinho put it
best in his post-match interview stating, "They played as I had expected –
with joy, with intensity, with motivation and with self-belief because up until
we started to score against them they even looked better than us."
Real Madrid face Zaragoza
next this Saturday, November 3rd in La Liga home match at the
Santiago Bernabéu. Estrada Fernández
will be officiating the match. Until
then, ¡Hala Madrid!
written by Gail Hidalgo
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