Six of the best as Real cruise past Celta

Gareth Bale scored twice before Isco curled home to have them out of sight before half time. Achraf, Kroos and an unfortunate own goal added to their tally in the second half giving gloss to the scoreline, and sending out a warning to Liverpool with the Champions League final only two weeks away.

It was a win made even more impressive by the fact the Zidane elected to rest a number of his main starters. Cristiano Ronaldo, Sergio Ramos and Dani Carvajal all had the night off as they look to get themselves into top condition for Kiev. Achraf was given a rare start at right back while Gareth Bale also started, leading to more uncertainty over what plans Zidane actually has for the Welshman.

Bale himself proved his worth pretty early in the first half. With only 13 minutes on the clock he was set free by a ball over the top and bore down on goal before crashing an effort off the near post. His second, 17 minutes later, was even more impressive. He beat his man with a cute flick on the byline and hammered an effort past Sergio in goal for two goals in the opening half an hour.

For the Celta goalkeeper it was just beginning. Two minutes later he was beaten again as Isco curled a stunning effort beyond him from 20 yards out - both of these players making their case to start in Kiev.

It remained 3-0 at the break, but not long after the restart Achraf had his second ever league goal after he finished through the legs of the goalkeeper. The fifth came after Sergi Gomez deflected home a Marcelo cross from the left and there was still time for Toni Kroos to tap home a sixth.

 

12 May 2018

All in all it was a good night’s work for Zidane’s side, although in the grand scheme of things it’s little more than a training exercise. The manager will be pleased with the way his side performed, and even more so for the fact that there were no more injuries. Marcelo played 90 minutes, as did the midfield three of Modric, Kroos and Casemiro and it will not be surprising if they are rested next week.

Celta’s season finished weeks ago in truth, and that was evident on today’s showing. They sit in 13th place, three points above Bilbao in 14th, and they are not competing for Europe or to avoid relegation. Perfect for the Real Madrid fans to wave their team off against.

 

12 May 2018