Osasuna 1-5 Real Madrid. Rocket Ronaldo is back!
Real Madrid pulled off the big guns in their visit to Osasuna's field, in a night where several remarkable goals were scored as theMerengues wiped out any Blaugrana hopes of shortening the gap in La Liga. Cristiano Ronaldoscored a brace and reached his 37th goal in theSpanish League, allowing him to be 1 goal ahead of Barcelona's Lionel Messi, in thePichichi rankings.
Tremendous victory at the "Reyno de Navarra", as Real Madrid crushed Osasuna by1-5 last night. Seen by many as one of the most difficult games the Merengues still had ahead of them in La Liga, Cristiano Ronaldo and his teammates made a statement of how serious they are when it comes to being crowned champions this season. The Portuguese player was the MVP of game by scoring two great goals, first from an impressive 35 meters long range strike and later in the game from a free-kick. Karim Benzema with a Van Basten trademark goal and Gonzalo Higuaín with a brace, scored the remaining goals for Real Madrid, keeping the 6 points lead overBarcelona, since the Blaugrana also won their home game against Athletico Bilbaoby 2-0.
Real Madrid had one of their best first halfs of the season and it didn't take them more than 7 minutes to get the opener. And what a goal that was, with Cristiano Ronaldo taking a defender on the left, finding space to make a long cross andKarim Benzema responding with a spectacular first touch volley. Osasuna's goalkeeper could only stare at the ball, as he witnessed in first hand at a goal that had many resemblances with the epic Van Basten goal, scored in the EURO 1988.
José Mourinho's men didn't slow down and Osasuna didn't seem to be capable of holding Real Madrid's attacking firepower for much longer. With the clock marking 37 minutes, Cristiano Ronaldo was granted some space still 35 meters away from goal and didn't ask for permission to blast a long range rocket, making it 0-2 and scoring one of the best goals of his career so far. The celebrations were also distinctive, with Ronaldo pulling his shorts up and showing his right leg muscles. After the game, the Portuguese explained that the peculiar way of celebrating the goal, had to do with a joke about Adán (Real Madrid goalkeeper), since he never goes to the gym to work out his legs. With this impressive goal, CR7 certainly showedAdán the benefits of having a strong right leg...
Three minutes later, the Merengues added another to their count, this time in a counter-attack set up by Xabi Alonso, who assisted Gonzalo Higuaín for the Argentinian to finish in style. With the score at 0-3 and the game being controlled byReal Madrid, both teams headed up to the locker rooms, as half-time reached only minutes later.
After the break, Osasuna came with a different attitude and they got rewarded with an early goal, close to the 48th minute. Cristiano Ronaldo lost a ball near the line, which allowed his opponent to make a long cross to the far post, that would end meeting Nino's head. The header was very accurate and Casillas didn't have much he could do to stop it. The crowd erupted in cheers and Osasuna would have their best 15 minutes period in the game, really putting Real Madrid into trouble for a while.
However, the Merengues showed their character and not only they held their advantage as they would also extend it further on, near the 70th minute of the game. For the first time this season in La Liga games, Cristiano Ronaldo finally managed to score from a free-kick, even though his shot got deflected by an opponent that was on the wall. The Portuguese player reached his 37th goal in La Liga, which allows him to lead the Pichichi table, 1 goal ahead of Barça's Lionel Messi.
There would still be time for a fifth goal, as Higuaín concluded another great assist from Cristiano Ronaldo, with an easy header from close range. The goal also had a special meaning since it was the club's 100th goal in La Liga this season, with 30 games played so far. The man of the match award has to be given to Cristiano Ronaldo, as he ended the night with 2 assists and 2 goals, helping Real Madrid to hold Barcelona 6 points below on the standings, just 3 weeks before the Merenguesvisit the Camp Nou for another exciting Clasico.
Real Madrid line-up vs Osasuna:
Goalkeeper: Casillas
Defenders: Marcelo, Raul Albiol, Sergio Ramos, Arbeloa
Midfielders: Xabi Alonso, Granero
Attackers: Ozil, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Higuaín
| Match stats provided by www.ronaldo7.net |
|---|
|
|
|
|
|---|
1
|
Goals
|
5
|
1
|
Assists
|
3
|
13
|
Shots
|
13
|
1
|
Shots on goal
|
7
|
3
|
Corner kicks
|
4
|
17
|
Fouls commited
|
14
|
2
|
Yellow cards
|
1
|
1
|
Red cards
|
0
|
50%
|
Ball possession
|
50%
|
Real Madrid vs APOEL kick-off time (04-04-2012):
Jakarta (Indonesia) | GMT+7: 02:45
Spain (Madrid) | GMT+1: 20:45
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | GMT+0: 19:45
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | GMT-2: 17:45
New York (United States) | GMT-5: 14:45
Los Angeles (United States) | GMT-8: 11:45
Beijing (China) | GMT-8: 11:45
