Zinedine Zidane made it two wins from as many matches in charge as his Real Madrid side hammered Sporting Gijon 5-1 at the Bernabeu this afternoon.
All five of Madrid's goals - scored by their attacking trio of Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema - came before the break, which rendered Isma Lopez's effort after the restart for the visitors little more than a consolation.
It took Los Blancos seven minutes to break the deadlock in the Spanish capital and it came from Bale. Fresh from scoring a hat-trick in Zidane's first match at the helm a week ago, the Welshman darted towards the near post to flick Toni Kroos's corner beyond a stranded Ivan Cuellar.
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The visiting goalkeeper was then beaten for a second time just two minutes later as Ronaldo opened his account for the afternoon. The ball was touched on by Benzema for the Portuguese attacker, who duly fired his rising shot into the top corner.
Bale turned creator soon after when Benzema acrobatically volleyed in a third goal as Madrid scored three times in the opening 12 minutes of a league match for the first time since January 1956.
The fourth goal arrived in the 18th minute and came about courtesy of Dani Carvajal. The right-back drove in a low cross, which Ronaldo diverted past a diving Cuellar.
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It seemed that it would be the half's final piece of goal action, only for Benzema to claim his second goal in the 41st minute. Isco chipped a pass into the penalty area and despite Cuellar sprinting off his line, Madrid's French striker got to the ball first to poke it in.
Lopez went on to claw back some pride for Sporting with his low strike in the 62nd minute, yet it did little to dampen the home side's mood as they closed the gap on neighbours and leaders Atletico Madrid to one point.
However, on a more sour note, Zidane lost the services of goalscorers Bale and Benzema to injuries, both of which appeared to be muscular complaints.
Liam Apicella
