Entering the match against Espanyol in round 21 of La Liga, coach Santiago Solari welcomed Gareth Bale back from injury, however, he put the Welsh player on the bench, while Marcelo had to give up the left-back position to Sergio Reguilon. The midfield is the reunion of the trio Casemiro, Toni Kroos, Luka Modric.
Espanyol have been a favorite opponent of the White Vultures in previous seasons and have therefore suffered a game soon. After Vinicius Junior had his first shot after 2 minutes of play, Benzema scored when the ball bounced back after Diego Lopez blocked Modric's shot.
The early goal allowed the away players to play comfortably and once again, Vinicius was an important spearhead for the left attack. The presence of the top midfield trio helped Real Madrid control the match well, and in the 15th minute, Modric assisted Sergio Ramos to head dangerously, doubling the gap for Real Madrid.
In the 25th minute, the hope of being grouped for Espanyol was renewed when the shot of Diac Vila hit the away team's defender and reached Leo Baptistao's position. In a comfortable position, this player controlled the ball and decidedly finished past Courtois.
However, that was all Espanyol could do. In the right minute of extra time, Benzema, with a free kick against Vinicius, had a very dangerous kick, defeating his former teammate for the second time.
In the second half, the injury forced Ramos to make way for Nacho Fernandez, but Espanyol could not take advantage of that to get up.
Benzema continued his impressive performance as an attacking midfielder, providing assists that had Dani Carvajal and Modric finished better, Real Madrid had scored more goals.
Of course, Real Madrid still scored more goals with the way they showed, with the player named on the scoreboard being Bale. 3 minutes after coming on as Vinicius' replacement, Bale took advantage of the opportunity that Benzema and Lucas Vazquez coordinated in the middle to increase the score to 4-1.
Benzema then created an opportunity for Carvajal once again but Lopez saved Espanyol. In the 77th minute, Raphael Varane received a direct red card after a dangerous tackle on Pablo Piatti. With the advantage over the player, Espanyol only took advantage of 1 chance in the 81st minute. Roberto Rosales controlled the ball well and finished to reduce the score to 4-2.
The final minutes were quite tense for Real Madrid but in the end, they still stood firm to reclaim 3rd place from Sevilla, and at the same time, aimed for the next match also in Catalania - the second leg of the King's Cup quarter-final against Girona.
