Benzema and Militao injured in Real Madrid win over Valencia

Real Madrid won 2-0 against Valencia at the Santiago Bernabeu on Thursday evening. The reigning LaLiga champions needed the win to keep pace with rivals Barcelona. Barça defeated Real Betis on Wednesday to extend their lead at the top LaLiga table to eight points. However, Real has now closed the gap to five again with the win.

Real dominated on Thursday in the early stages of the game. The hosts had 70% possession and five shots in total compared to Valencia’s zero shots within the first half hour. However, the reigning national champion was unable to put too much pressure on goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili during this period.

Star defender Eder Militao was then forced to leave the field in the 35th minute of the game. The central defender made a clumsy jump and seemed to sprain his ankle on the landing. Dani Carvajal, typically a full-back, replaced the Brazilian in central defence. However, Militao didn’t seem too concerned about the injury and was seen smiling on the bench later in the game.

Antonio Rüdiger finally shot the ball into the net a stone’s throw away. The fellow center defender headed in from a corner kick. Nevertheless, the goal was eventually disallowed with the help of a VAR review. Replays showed Karim Benzema shoving Yunus Musah just seconds before Rüdiger headed the shot. The seriousness of the contact was certainly debatable. Nevertheless, the goal did not hold and the game went into the break goalless.

Asensio, Vini put Real Madrid over Valencia

Real finally took the lead early in the second half thanks to Marco Asensio. The winger fired in a beautiful long shot from just outside the penalty area. The ball essentially knuckled into the air, which stunned Mamardashvili into goal. He didn’t even move from his seat.