Photo: AS
Álvaro Vázquez García has been playing with Espanyol in his hometown of Barcelona since he was 14. The adorable striker scored the first goal of today’s match, but Real Zaragoza went on to win 2-1. He also won the Silver Boot in last year’s Under-20 World Cup, so he has a bright future.
You don't see a lot of Casillas celebrations. Great save, guapo. Photo: AP Photo via Daylife.
Real Madrid 3 – Espanyol 0. Real Madrid was back in form yesterday, pulling off a lively 3-0 win against Espanyol at the potato field that is Santiago Bernabeu. The overly-enthusiastic referee Clos Gómez handed out eight yellow cards and three reds, most of them undeserved. Madrid defenders Carvalho and Marcelo had already received yellow cards when Cristiano Ronaldo was awarded a free kick in the 27th minute. Mr. Referee Gómez handed out yellow card number three to Espanyol’s Luis García after the free kick hit his arm in the wall, and Cristiano was ordered a penalty kick, despite Espanyol’s objections. C-Ron’s shot went in, but he judged to have stopped after the run-up and had to retake it. It went in again, marking his first goal since that 7-0 win for Portugal against North Korea (which was his only goal in the World Cup). The first half ended with no further goals or cards.
Second half. Real Madrid’s Pepe is sent off after receiving two yellow cards in four minutes. Espanyol’s Galán is sent off for tripping Cristiano Ronaldo. Espanyol’s Verdú is shown a yellow card for reasons unknown. After several shots from both sides, Higuaín scores for Real Madrid. He is pleased. He comes off the pitch after a job well done, and is replaced by Karim Benzema. Espanyol’s Forlín is shown a yellow card (no. 7, if you’re still keeping count). Benzema scores his first goal of the season. Forlín gets another yellow card and is sent off. Four boring minutes of stoppage time are added, but with Real Madrid up by three and 19 players left on the pitch, the match is over.
Whew. Espanyol ended up being the livelier side in the game, but los merenengues still had most of the possession, and their strikers are starting to make a comeback. Real Madrid may not have played at the level we have come to expect from them, they have had an exhausting week with one Champions League and two La Liga fixtures. Sometimes winning inspires a team to play well more than playing well causes them to win.
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