Real Madrid Blow Away Title Rivals Girona With Thumping 4-0 Victory
Brahim Díaz scores ‘incredible’ goal to hand Real Madrid advantage in Champions League round of 16 tie
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The home side ran out 4-0 winners in the biggest win recorded by any
league leader against the second-ranked team in the competition on
home turf since Barcelona beat Real Madrid 5-0 way back in 1945.
Girona had been LALIGA’s surprise package this season, coming into
this game only two points behind Real Madrid and having only been
beaten once all season, against their rivals at Estadi Montilivi in a
3-0 defeat in September.
The visitors had the odds stacked against them for their latest
encounter, with coach Míchel given a touchline ban after being sent
off for his protests against a refereeing decision against Real
Sociedad last weekend. In addition, influential midfielder Yangel
Herrera and experienced defender Daley Blind were both absent through
suspensions of their own after collecting five yellow cards.
The 24-year-old’s brilliant effort was the only goal of the first leg,
with the Spanish giant taking its slim lead into the return fixture at
the Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid on March 6.
After the host had kept the 14-time European champion at bay in the
first half, Díaz broke the deadlock in the 48th minute. The diminutive
attacker picked the ball up on the right touchline, before beating his
defender with a deft body-feint.
He then dribbled past two more Leipzig players, staying on his feet
despite attempts to knock him off balance.
The two England youngsters clashed during Madrid's 2-0 win at Getafe
on February 1, with Bellingham allegedly mouthing the word "rapist"
towards the Manchester United loanee. After Getafe lodged a complaint
with La Liga's representative and a lip reader looked into the
incident, The Sun writes that the league has referred this to the
Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF).
The report adds the RFEF are appointing a judge to fully investigate
the incident and they will decide within the next two weeks whether
the 20-year-old will be punished. If found guilty and it falls under
the 'serious' category, the former Borussia Dortmund star could get a
four-match ban but if considered 'grave', Bellingham may be suspended
for 10 games. Both Madrid and Getafe would have 10 days to appeal that
verdict.
Real Madrid’s salary limit is more than double that of their closest
rival, Atletico Madrid, who can spend €303m. Barcelona, meanwhile, who
have been struggling with a financial crisis for the past few years,
have seen their salary limit drop from €270m to €204m.
La Liga’s salary limits are designed to ensure the financial
sustainability and competitiveness of the clubs, as well as to comply
with the UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules. As Javier Tebas explained a
couple weeks ago publicly to Fabrizio Romano, Real Madrid are in such
a great financial position, that signing Kylian Mbappe (and “another”)
is no problem at all.
The Italian tactician highly esteems the German for his strategic
prowess in the midfield and advocates for his extension, particularly
considering the diminishing significance of his midfield counterpart,
Luka Modric, at the club, as reported by the German publication Sport
Bild.
Despite the emergence of younger talents such as Eduardo Camavinga and
Aurelien Tchouameni, Kroos remains a pivotal figure in Real's
midfield, as he continues to impress consistently in decisive matches
for "Los Blancos". His recent performances have convinced Madrid's
management of his outstanding qualities, and negotiations for the
extension of his contract are expected to commence at the end of
March, with both parties keen on reaching an agreement.
He is on his way to putting an end to a successful career, but at 38
years old he has him as a substitute at Real Madrid. The Croatian has
won everything with the club with which he has a contract until June
2024 and which has not offered him an extension.
Given this situation, The Athletic assures that Carlo Ancelotti
offered Modric to become part of his technical staff at Madrid in case
the multi-time champion decided to retire at the end of this season.
However, the former Tottenham footballer sees himself as having the
strength to continue playing, even if it is not for Real Madrid and
that is why he would have said 'no' to Ancelotti, but not outright
because there are several months left until the end of the
relationship.
