League. Real 4-2 Almeria, Benzema hat-trick

Four to two in Almeria, final seal from Rodrygo but the blancos remain -8 from Xavi after Barça’s victory against Betis

by our Correspondent Filippo Maria Ricci

Karim and his Brazilian friends. This is the title for Real Madrid-Almeria, a match with little history played this afternoon at the Bernabeu. Ancelotti’s team came from the terrible defeat in Girona, 4-2 with poker by ‘Taty’ Castellanos, and he took it out on the Andalusian team who had won a fundamental game for salvation with Getafe and waiting for Elche decided make a big turnover. Rubi confirmed only 3 of the victorious players with Getafe and lost 4-2. Ancelotti had moved to -8 from Xavi, but in the evening Barça easily beat Betis and escaped to +11, practically sealing the title.

Fight

Benzema has a great desire to play even the less relevant matches because he has a precise objective: to try to snatch the ‘pichichi’ from Lewandowski. The day began with the Pole leading by 4 goals, but waiting for his answer the gap was drastically reduced: it dropped to -1. And the possible poker was skipped earlier because the Var called back the referee who had awarded Madrid a penalty in the 79th minute for a foul by Fernando on Benzema: while running, the Frenchman hit Rodrigo Ely causing him to trip, and then because a large diagonal Karim printed himself on the post (87′).

Quick hat-trick

In the 17th minute Karim had already scored twice, with his left and right. A tap-in offered to him with the right winger by Vinicius (10 assists in La Liga, 18 for the season) who burned Mendes on the left, a winning right after a magic from Rodrygo on the baseline, with Samu outflanking thanks to a back-heel . An absolute virtuosity. And before the break, as had already happened to him on 2 April against Valladolid, the Frenchman finished his hat-trick. Perfect penalty called for a foul by Ramazani on Lucas Vazquez. Third hat-trick in this month of April, given that Karim also scored 3 goals at the Camp Nou in the Copa del Rey.

Podium hunt

For Benzema 17 goals in this Liga and 236 in general: overtaken the Mexican Hugo Sanchez in fourth place in the all-time scorers chart of the Spanish league led by Leo Messi (473). Then Cristiano Ronaldo (311) and Telmo Zarra (251). Benzema needs another 15 goals to get on the podium.

More goals

In the end of the first half, Almeria closed the gap with an empty net tap-in from their Vinicius, Lazaro, served at the far post by Ramazani. But 121 seconds into the second half Madrid scored again thanks to a right-footed shot from the edge into the top corner by the highly inspired Rodrygo. Defensively, Madrid seemed very distracted and so in the 65th minute they conceded another goal with a header by Robertone after a cross by Portillo after a mistake by Kroos, with Ancelotti very frowning. In the final, the posts of Benzema and Asensio, the crossbar of Asensio himself and a goal disallowed by Camavinga due to offside by Lucas Vazquez. Madrid had fun, Benzema more.

Incomprehensible Vinicius

On the sidelines, we must report Vinicius’ tenth yellow card in this Liga, this time for protests. The young Brazilian gets his attitude wrong with dangerous continuity, he is blatant in his complaints, he behaves in an incomprehensible way especially if one considers the context of his frequent antics. To give you an idea, Karim Benzema in 14 years of La Liga with Madrid has got 9 yellow cards in all.

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