Karim Benzema’s stunning performance helped Real Madrid take a 4-0 lead over Real Valladolid in the first half of the La Liga match on April 2nd (Hanoi time). Following their loss in the El Clasico match on March 20th, Real Madrid has fallen behind Barcelona by a considerable margin of 12 points. This gap temporarily increased to 15 points after Barcelona’s 4-0 win against Elche. As a result, every match for Carlo Ancelotti’s team is now like a final.
Facing the pressure to catch up, Real Madrid began to dominate the game from the start against a Valladolid team fighting to avoid relegation. It took only 22 minutes for the home team to score the first goal. Marco Asensio dribbled straight into the midfield and passed to Rodrygo on the right wing. The Brazilian striker made a decisive shot to open the score.
Seven minutes later, Real Madrid doubled their lead. Vinicius Junior’s uncomfortable dribble and cross found a gap between the Valladolid goalkeeper and defenders, and the ball landed at the feet of Karim Benzema. The French striker scored a header into the near post.
In minutes 32 and 36, Benzema added two more goals to complete a hat-trick in just seven minutes. All of these were high-quality finishing touches by the Ballon d’Or winner in 2022.
The first half ended with a 4-0 scoreline in favor of Ancelotti's team. Real Madrid had complete control of the game, with a 58% ball possession, 14 shots, and 7 shots on target.
After the break, the away team tried to find a goal to get back into the game. However, they only managed a few decent chances in the first five minutes before Real Madrid regained their dominance. Rodrygo, Vinicius, and Asensio frequently combined to put Valladolid's defense in danger. In minute 73, Asensio exchanged passes with Rodrygo in the penalty area before firing a shot that the goalkeeper could not save. Later, Lucas Vazquez scored another goal to secure a 6-0 victory for Real Madrid. These three points helped Los Blancos reduce the gap with Barcelona to 12 points.
More importantly, Real Madrid now has a perfect warm-up for the second leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal against Barcelona on April 6th. In the first leg, Real Madrid lost 0-1.
