Real Madrid made it five wins from their last six La Liga matches with a 4-0 victory over Real Zaragoza on Saturday.
After a quiet opening, Madrid found themselves 2-0 ahead with strikes from Gonzalo Higuain and Angel di Maria in the first period.
Zaragoza were the better side for large periods of the second half, but they could not find that elusive strike and Madrid added two late on through Michael Essien and Luka Modric.
Here, Sports Mole dissects the 90 minutes of action between the two sides.
Match statistics:
Real Madrid:
Shots 15
On target 11
Possession 51%
Corners 5
Fouls 10
Real Zaragoza:
Shots 9
On target 3
Possession 49%
Corners 4
Fouls 10
Was the result fair?
The result was correct, but not the margin of victory. A 4-0 score suggests that it was a routine win for Madrid when in truth it was anything but. They scored two quick-fire goals in the opening period to set them on their way but Zaragoza were the better side in the second period. Unfortunately, they conceded two more in the final moments of play.
Real Madrid's performance
6/10. Madrid claimed all three points and scored four goals, but make no mistake about it, they were not great this evening. Whether or not they could have raised their performance if they so needed is another question entirely, but their overall play was nowhere near the standard that Jose Mourinho will demand.
Real Zaragoza's performance
6/10. Zaragoza were unlucky to suffer such a heavy defeat. They started the first period on the front foot, but conceding the two goals completely deflated them. To their credit they came out fighting in the second period, but they just could not find a finish and collapsed in the final moments of the match.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Luka Modric: The Croatian scored his first goal for the club this evening as he enjoyed his best performance in a white shirt. His touch and passing were of the highest level.
Biggest gaffe of the match
Zaragoza simply had to keep it tight after conceding the opening goal, but they fell two behind almost immediately following sloppy defending. It killed the game so early.
Referee performance
Javier Estrada Fernandez had a fairly straightforward 90 minutes of action this evening. He went unnoticed for large periods of the match, which is always a good sign for a referee. However, his linesman let him down with a couple of dodgy decisions.
What next?
Real Madrid: Madrid return to Champions League action at home to Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday before facing Levante in La Liga next Sunday.
Real Zaragoza: Zaragoza will attempt to return to winning ways when they welcome Deportivo La Coruna next Saturday.
Matt Law
