Real Madrid faced Valencia for the second time in a few days and this time picked up a sensational 5-0 win away from home.
Gonzalo Higuain opened the scoring before Cristiano Ronaldo and Angel di Maria scored twice each in an unstoppable 10-minute spell to finish off the game before half-time.
Valencia improved after the break but the damage had already been done.
See below for Sports Mole's analysis of the main talking points from the La Liga clash.
Match statistics:
Valencia:
Shots 20
On target 4
Possession 56%
Corners 9
Fouls 22
Real Madrid:
Shots 13
On target 7
Possession 44%
Corners 5
Fouls 13
Was the result fair?
The win was fair, but 5-0 does flatter Real somewhat. Most of the damage was done in a 10-minute spell in the first half, when Real notched four goals. From then Valencia created more chances, but the damage had been done.
Valencia's performance
Not actually that bad. They had no answer to the pace of Real's breaks, admittedly, but going forward they did have chances. Their main problem was how wasteful they were in front of goal. It certainly wasn't the performance of a side that should have lost 5-0, especially in the second 45.
Real Madrid's performance
In the first half, absolutely phenomenal. The pace with which they countered left Valencia with no answer. They rode their luck in the second half a little, but remained tight at the back when needed to hang on to the clean sheet. Overall, a professional job.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Angel di Maria: This is a very hard one to pick. With honourable mentions to Mesut Ozil and Cristiano Ronaldo, this one has to go to Di Maria. The Argentine set up one and scored a couple and was involved with everything going forward, including a big say in Ronaldo's second goal. What's more, he was up and down the flank tracking back throughout.
Biggest gaffe
Although it ultimately had no bearing on the result, Gonzalo Higuain's miss just before he scored the opener cannot be ignored. He was eight yards out with only the goalkeeper to beat but somehow swept his shot wide of the post. The one he did score was actually a trickier chance.
Referee performance
Jose Teixeira started off really well by correctly booking Valencia's Jonas for diving. However there were a couple of harsh cards given for handballs that really shouldn't have been. He was also guilty of being too keen to stop the game for minor fouls.
What next?
Next, these two teams face each other for the third consecutive game in the second leg of the Copa del Rey quarter-final. Real are 2-0 up from the first leg so Valencia will be hoping they can keep Ronaldo et al quiet on Wednesday.
Matt Domm
