Having been thwarted by Sporting Gijon last time out in a 0-0 draw, Benitez's men sent out a message on their first La Liga game back in the capital as Bale quietened his critics and Benzema made a goalscoring return from a thigh injury.
Bale gave Madrid the ideal start when he headed home with barely two minutes played, having been on the receiving end of boos from sections of the Bernabeu faithful in recent months.
He converted James' precise delivery before the Colombian curled home a wonderful free kick to double the advantage.
Benzema was the beneficiary of neat interplay between the pair early in the second half, with James then reiterating his claim for a starting berth with an acrobatic second.
Despite having chances, Cristiano Ronaldo failed to open his account for the season, while Ruben Castro's missed penalty shortly after the hour summed up a fruitless evening for Pepe Mel's men, who conceded again late on when Bale scored his second of the night to give Benitez an emphatic first competitive win in charge.
No comments:
Post a Comment