Cristiano Ronaldo during Real Madrid 4-2 Levante game
Real Madrid received Levante at the Bernabeu Stadium, beating them 4-2, on the 23rd round of the Spanish League football with another “hat-trick” by Cristiano Ronaldo, extending their lead over FC Barcelona to 10 points.
Ronaldo’s third goal was a beauty when his shot from outside the area made the ball take an unusual path, climbing and descending very steeply before entering the goal. It was goal number 4000 by Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in official competitions.
Real Madrid took advantage of yesterday’s slip by Barcelona, who traveled to Pamplona and losing their game against Osasuna 3-2, thereby increasing their lead over the Catalans and getting one step closer to winning their first Spanish Championship since 2008.
It wasn’t an easy win for Real Madrid, who practically started the game in disadvantage after Argentine defender Gustavo Cabral opened the scoring for the visitors after just five minutes of play, following a free kick and a defensive error by the Merengues.
After this goal, Levante literally parked their “bus” in front of their goal, defending with 10 men and leaving only the Ivorian Aruna Koné up front, in an attempt to halt the Real Madrid “avalanche”. Only close to the interval did Real Madrid equalize through a penalty executed by Cristiano Ronaldo after midfielder Vicente Iborra touched the ball inside the area with his arm in an attempt to stop it getting to Benzema. He was given a second yellow card for that and subsequent expulsion.
The second half saw Real Madrid take the lead on the 50th minute when Cristiano Ronaldo scored his second of the night when he easily headed in from a pass by Higuain, giving Los Blancos a 2-1 advantage.
Then came that monumental third goal by CR7 from outside the area that rose up over keeper Munua and then dipped quickly into the top right corner to give Real Madrid a comfortable 3-1 lead. It was the sixth hat-trick by Cristiano Ronaldo this season.
Against the run of play, Levante reduced to 3-2 from a quick counter-attack by Koné, who jumped between Ramos and Pepe to head in a left-wing cross from Serrano, but Benzema changed the scoreboard to 4-2, when the French international cut in and curled a lovely shot beyond the outstretched arms of Levante keeper Munua in the 66th minute after an assist from Cristiano Ronaldo, whose name was sung in unison by the crowd during the game.
The three goals from Cristiano Ronaldo tonight, allowed him to solidify the leadership as the best scorer in La Liga, now totaling 27 goals, four more than his main rival Lionel Messi, with 23. He also increased his season’s tally to a total of 34 goals in 33 games and has so far scored 121 goals which include 14 hat-tricks since joining Real Madrid.
Watch Video Highlights and Goals of the Real Madrid 4-2 Levante Game:
