Benzema reaches new heights for Real Madrid in win over Elche to keep pace in LaLiga race
Karim Benzema scored twice from the penalty spot as Real Madrid beat Elche 4-0 in LaLiga on Wednesday.
Marco Asensio put Madrid ahead in the eighth minute at the Santiago Bernabeu, driving at the Elche defence before slotting past goalkeeper Edgar Badia.
The home side dominated the first half and Benzema doubled their lead with half an hour played after his header was handled inside the box by defender Enzo Roco, before converting another penalty on the stroke of halftime.
Luka Modric added a fourth off the bench after 80 minutes as Madrid secured the win to close the gap on league leaders Barcelona to eight points.
Rapid reaction
- After Club World Cup, Real Madrid keep eyes on LaLiga
It’s been a good week for Real Madrid, adding another trophy to their collection by winning the Club World Cup and now completing a routine 4-0 victory over Elche to ensure that the LaLiga title race isn’t quite over yet.
Both of those outcomes were expected — failing to win the Club World Cup against inferior opposition would have been a shock, while Elche are comfortably the worst team in LaLiga — but nonetheless it’s a boost for Madrid’s confidence, at a time when they badly needed it.
The situation at the top of the table remains far from ideal. Eight points is a significant lead for Barcelona. But there are 17 games and 51 points still up for grabs, and this Madrid team will fight to the very end to avoid the title race becoming a procession.
The next month might just decide their season, with a daunting fixture list starting with an away trip to Osasuna followed by visiting Anfield in the Champions League, hosting Atletico Madrid in LaLiga and then facing Barca in the Copa del Rey semifinals.
- Benzema adds to legend status in passing Raul
Benzema has been scoring at a decent rate recently — he found the net in Madrid’s 5-3 Club World Cup final win over Al Hilal in Morocco, in their Copa del Rey quarterfinal win over Atletico Madrid on Jan. 26, and the LaLiga game away at Athletic Club before that — but by a quirk of fate, he had only scored one league goal in front of the home fans at the Bernabeu this season.
He changed that here with two ruthless finishes from the penalty spot, giving Badia no chance. It’s now 230 league goals for Real Madrid, a brace taking Benzema past another club icon in the all-time ranking, Raul Gonzalez. Only one player scored more league goals for Madrid: a certain Cristiano Ronaldo with 311, arguably the greatest finisher of them all.
Benzema’s injury-hit season has led some to question whether the 35-year-old is capable of matching the career-best form last year which finally earned him the Ballon d’Or. But Benzema has been proving doubters wrong for years now, and there’s life in him yet.
- Elche’s nightmare season continues
The worst team in LaLiga history was the Sporting Gijon side who amassed just 13 points over the course of the 1997-98 season, with a record of 2 wins, 7 draws and 29 defeats. Bottom-of-the-table Elche’s challenge between now and May is to better that tally, because escaping relegation is surely beyond them.
Their record right now reads played 21, won 1, drawn 6 and lost 14, for a miserly total of nine points. They’ve had five coaches this season — including temporary appointments — with Pablo Machin the latest man in charge, but the improvement has been marginal at best.
This was a poor performance, with just six chances created, no shots on target and an xG of 0.57. Only goalkeeper Badia emerged with any credit.
