(Football news) Last season Real Madrid were heavily dependent on Thibaut Courtois and Karim Benzema as the pair won the Yashin trophy and Ballon d’or respectively. The starlets were once again key in Real Madrid’s 2-0 victory over Real Valladolid. Carlo Ancelotti benched Luka Modric, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Eduardo Camavinga, Rodrygo and Eden Hazard. Vinicius Jr started alongside Marco Asensio and Karim Benzema up front while Toni Kroos played in the number 6 spot. Eder Militao was originally meant to start but he was withdrawn at the last minute. David Alaba was brought in to partner Antonio Rudiger in defence.

Real Madrid dominated possession in the early parts but very soon the game became very open. In the 10th minute Marco Asensio’s shot was saved by the Valladolid keeper. The rebound fell to Dani Ceballos who tried to play the ball back into the middle but it was cleared by Javi Sanchez. Real Madrid players and coaches appealed for handball but the referee signalled that the arm was on the ground. The video footage suggested the contrary as it looked like a clear handball. There were a couple of penalty calls on both sides which the referee didn’t give.

Courtois had another brilliant game as he pulled off some incredible saves. Benzema was having an off night as he didn’t look sharp enough but he stepped up when it mattered. In the 81st minute Javi Sanchez handled the ball once again but this time the referee did point to the spot after consulting with VAR.

Pedro Leon who was about to be substituted was sent off for excessively complaining to the referee and 4th official. Benzema stepped up and slotted the ball into the back of the net. He added another one two minutes later after substitutes Eduardo Camavinga and Luka Modric combined beautifully. The win takes Real Madrid to the top of the table for the time being with FC Barcelona having a home game against Espanyol in hand.

Also read: Should Real Madrid keep Brahim Diaz for next season?