Villarreal draw against Real Madrid thanks to their good play and two goals from the Asturian
A great match and an impressive point. Villarreal drew against Real Madrid at the Estadio de la Cerámica in an exciting match that ended in a draw thanks to two Santi Cazorla goals for the Yellows, as well as strikes from Karim Benzema and Raphaël Varane for the capital side (2-2).
Luis García lined his team up in a 4-2-3-1 with Santi Cáseres and Javi Fuego in a double pivot. Ahead of them, Pablo Fornals, Santi Cazorla and Samu Chukwueze lined up behind Gerard Moreno, as the Yellows looked for goals.
There was real joy at the beginning. The Yellow Submarine got ahead early on, but even before then, they had warned Madrid of their danger, with Thibaut Courtois saving from Chukwueze to deny what looked like a goal. Only a few seconds later, Villarreal made it 1-0. Once more, Chukwueze faced up to Real Madrid, playing the ball to Cazorla, allowing the midfielder to show his enormous skill. The No.19 pushed the ball softly into the corner, with it going just inside the left post.
The joy lasted for little time. Real Madrid drew level just three minutes later. Lucas Vázquez crossed the ball into the box, with Benzema heading into the back of the net (1-1, m.6).
The match was fast-paced, with both teams having a number of strikes on goal trying to get ahead. It was the team in white who were able to do so. Toni Kroos played the ball into the box from a free-kick, which was headed home powerfully by Varane (1-2, m.19). Despite the blow, Villarreal continued to look good.
García used the bench to change things in the second half. Karl Toko Ekambi came on for Cáseres in an offensive move. It worked well.
Real Madrid trusted in their ability to counter attack, and nearly increased their lead. Vázquez went through one-on-one with Sergio Asenjo, but the Villarreal keeper pulled off an impressive save.
Villarreal’s bravery was rewarded eventually. Fornals got down the left flank, moving into the box and playing the ball across to the back post, where Cazorla appeared to head home and make it 2-2. It was the Asturian’s second of the match, which sent the Estadio de la Cerámica crazy (m.82).
Next up for Villarreal is a match at Ipurúa against SD Eibar on Sunday (12pm CET). ¡Vamos, Submarino!
Lineups:
Villarreal CF: Asenjo; Layún, Álvaro, Víctor Ruiz, Jaume Costa; Javi Fuego (Trigueros, m. 81), Cáseres (Toko Ekambi, m. 63); Chukwueze, Fornals, Cazorla; Gerard (Bacca, m. 67).
Real Madrid CF: Courtois; Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; Casemiro, Modric (Valverde, m. 63), Kroos (Vinicius, m. 85); Lucas Vázquez, Benzema, Bale (Isco, m. 46).
Goals: 1-0. Min. 3: Cazorla. 1-1. Min. 6: Benzema. 1-2. Min. 19: Varane. 2-2. Min. 82: Cazorla.
Referee: González Fuertes. Booked: Álvaro, Jaume Costa (Villarreal); Casemiro y Ramos (Real Madrid).
Matchday information: Match corresponding to Matchday 17 of LaLiga, delayed due to the Club World Cup. Before the match, Villarreal gave a guard of honour to Real Madrid after their Club World Cup win. The clash took place in front of an attendance of 19,903.
