LaLiga
Teams: Real Madrid 2-0 Celta Vigo
Date: 16 March 2019
Venue: Santiago Bernabeu
Zinedine Zidane got his second tenure as Real Madrid coach off to a winning start with a 2-0 victory over Celta Vigo at Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday.
Celta Vigo had the first good opportunity of the game. Pione Sisto put a brilliant ball into the box and picked out Maxi Gomez who powered his header at goal but Keylor Navas showed excellent reflexes after initially being wrong-footed to throw his hand up to top the effort over the crossbar.
Los Blancos' first decent attempt at goal came in the 27th minute. The Celta defence backed off allowing Toni Kroos too much time and space and his 25-yard piledriver rose inches above the crossbar, ruffling the roof of the net in the process.
Soon after, Real came close again. Karim Benzema had the first chance but didn't make good contact with the ball on the overhead kick and the ball bounced up invitingly for Gareth Bale who took the shot on the volley. Ruben Blanco just stood and watched the shot as it bounced off the woodwork before Nestor Araujo was able to get it clear.
Celta countered with a chance of their own. Sisto looped a cross to Gomez in the box and he headed the ball down to Brais Mendez who had made the supporting run. He took the shot on the volley but Sergio Ramos was in the right place to block the shot and get it clear.
Ramos then got himself up the other side of the field and almost gave Real the lead when he met Kroos' corner, but his header went narrowly wide of the post.
The European champions thought they had taken the lead through Luka Modric on the hour mark. Celta cleared the corner, but could only find Modric who was waiting outside the box. He didn't make great contact with the ball, but it bounced through the crowd of players and nestled into the bottom corner. However, VAR disallowed the goal after Raphael Varane was adjudged to have been in an offside position whilst blocking the view of the goalkeeper.
However, just two minutes later, the deadlock would be broken with Isco getting the first goal of the game and of Zidane's second tenure. After a swift Real counter-attack, Benzema timed his run perfectly to get the byline on the left-hand side before squaring the ball for Isco, who tapped in from close range.
That goal appeared to give the hosts confidence as they began to play with a swagger. In the 77th minute, they had their second and an all-important cushion. The Celta defence gave Bale too much space who was able to set himself and hit his shot into the near post. It bounced off the inside of the woodwork before rolling into the back of the net.
After that, it was just a case of winding down the clock while pushing for the third. Although it never came, Zidane will be satisfied with the application shown by his charges as they cruised to a comfortable 2-0 victory.
