Real Madrid
Real Madrid round-up: Bernabeu, Asensio, Mariano, pre-season
A victory and useful preparation in the Trofeo Bernabéu, a look back on pre-season and the youngsters getting a chance to impress manager Zidane...including his son.
A trophy for the youth team
It was a night that was to pay tribute to the past but the Trofeo Bernabéu, which was a replay of the first European Cup won by Madrid, turned out to be a focus on the future. Several of the Madrid youth side were given a run out against Stade de Reim in a game that was won 5-3. The starting line-up was close to that which we'll see in the first game of the La Liga season and included "new" signings Morata and Asensio who had both been given grand presentations to the fans. Also in the eleven were Bale and Kroos.
Los Blancos' goals on the night came from Nacho (11'), Ramos (39'), Morata (44'), James (60') and Mariano (79').
Debuts galore
Although just a friendly against a lower level team, the honour of running out on the pitch last night for the players was clear to see and many of them spoke about it after. It was particularly special for those who were appearing on the famous ground for the first time. Making their Bernabéu debut were: Marco Asensio, Rubén Yáñez, Mariano, Enzo Zidane (the son of the coach), Lienhart and Álvaro Tejero.
Also making their debut were the new and improved video screens. They performed very well on the night running non-stop throughout the 90 minutes.
Four out of five ain't bad
With pre-season matches now officially over Real Madrid can reflect on a very satisfactory few weeks. After a 1-3 loss to PSG in late July, Zidane was able to call upon more and more of his first team regulars and wins against Chelsea (3-2), Bayern Munich (1-0), Sevilla (3-2) and last night's 5-3 victory over Stade de Reims has the team seemingly ready for the new season. And some of the big guns are still to return.
Mariano Leganés loan
The youngster was given a chance to shine in front of the Bernabéu faithful last night coming on at the start of the second half and scored the fifth and final goal of the night. Madrid are keen to keep the prospect on their books but also want him to get more game experience - something he's unlikely to get at the European champions - hence the plan is to loan him out. Teams that have shown an interest include Málaga, Villarreal and Porto however it would seem that Leganés are the preferred choice for Los Blancos technical team who want to build in a clause that would allow the player to return to his parent club in January if required.
