Real Madrid 2-0 Eibar: result, goals, summary: LaLiga Santander

REAL MADRID

Real Madrid player ratings versus Eibar

Real Madrid recorded a 2-0 win over Eibar at the Alfredo Di Stéfano on Saturday. We rate each player's performance after Los Blancos moved into second place in LaLiga.

Real Madrid 2-0 Eibar: Player ratings

All over at Valdebebas. Real Madrid return to second place and Eibar are now well and truly in a relegation battle.

Great long ball from Arribas as he finds Vinicius who is outfoxed by Olivera as the Brazilian was set to pull the trigger.

Time up at Valdebebas with three minutes set to be added.

Lucas Vazquez totally fine now and extinguishing any concerns of a muscle strain earlier.

Inui strikes and Courtois saves. First major intervention from the Belgian stopper in the second half.

Next up:

Real Madrid face FC Barcelona next Saturday

Eibar need a win urgently they welcome Levante UD to Ipurua

Kike Garcia has a pop from outside the box but his half volley is high and wide

It's now looking like Real Madrid who will add to their tally as the minutes tick away

Fine play from Kike as he wins a corner for his side .... the clock is ticking down for Eibar and it would look like their time in the top flight too as just eight games remain in the season for the Basque side.

Benzema off with Mariano his replacement.

Little for Courtois to do in the second half apart from the clearance from the gust of wind.

Changes for Eibar: Diop off Atienza takes his place.

Leon off/Rodrigues on for Eibar

The Benzema goal surely eases any nerves Real Madrid may have had.

Fine delivery from Vinicius and Benzema alert to head home, fine finish from the French striker

The ball is in the net as Casemiro slots home but the flag was up for an earlier offside. Three times now Madrid have had the ball in the Eibar net.

Twenty minutes remain at Valdebebas and Madrid now defending their slender lead as they play into the driving wind and rain

The game being played bow very much with "Eibar" conditions with heavy rain characteristic of the Basque Country.

Isco off/Arribas on. Marcelo too leaving the action as Vinicius comes on.

The thunderstorm has really helped Eibar as they lay siege to the Madrid area.

Lucas Vazquez pulls up as alarm bells ring for Madrid. The Galician seems to be okay to carry on.

Thunder now being heard at Valdebebas as the game is held up as Isco gets attention.

Pedro Leon has an effort from long range but fires over the Madrid bar.

My word.... Almost an og as the ball catches the wind and Madrid almost concede the most bizarre own goal. Courtois alert to salvage the danger.

Enrich on for Alex (Eibar change)

Modric off/ Kroos in. Asensio too leaves the action with Rodrigo on for the goal scorer.

That 'light rain' that I referred to is now anything but... a heavy old shower drenching the pitch now.

Changes afoot for Real Madrid with Vinicius poised to make an entrance.

Sad to admit but Pedro Leon is not the player he once was. His recent career has been hampered by injury but he looks slow and lacking sharpness.

Benzema heads over but does well to beat his markers. Eibar have yet to really get going in this second half.

Sergio watches on at Valdebebas today

Fine stop from Dimitroivic as he palms Asensio's effort majestically over the bar.

Light rain falling now at Valdebebas with the loss of Gil a major blow for Eibar. Inui has yet to really find the form of a few years ago with Los Armeros.

Eibar need to get back into the game with an early equaliser and ensure they keep Madrid at bay at the other end.

Lucas Vazquez gets a shot off but straight at Eibar's Serbian stopper

Madrid get us going for the second 45'

Gil off with Inui on for the Andalusian

The whistle sounds for the interval. Madrid lead through the 41st min. Asensio strike after having two goals ruled out for offside ( correctly it has to be said)

One minute of time to be added.

Good strike from Diop but the ball is driven straight at Courtois.

Inui warms up on the sideline for Eibar. Gil looks to be in trouble with just a minutes of the half remaining.

Gil does well but overhits a ball. We've not seen the best of the Andalusian starlet this afternoon.

Not the time or place for a debate on the merits of VAR but in these two instances, the use of the technology has been spot-on.

Two let-offs for Eibar with VAR performing to perfection....

Correction

Was Asensio off-side though ? Looks like he was.... Confirmed Var rules the goal out

Into the final ten of the half and Mendilibar will be the happier of the two managers with the current result. Eibar battling to avoid relegation after seven seasons in the top flight.

Eibar go close as Pozo drifts the ball wide of Courtos' post. Eibar very much back in the game now having overcome the wave of Madrid domination.

Stats on the 30' mark

Pedro Leon takes but Casemiro clears for Madrid.

Kike tripped and Eibar win a dangerous free. Nacho at fault for the home side.

Isco does well to loft the ball into the box but it ricochets off a Eibar defender and the keeper gathers.

Madrid being allowed far too much space by Eibar and it really feels like a question of time before we see Dimotrivic retrieving the ball from the back of the net.

Great strike from the Mallorquin with Dimitrovic totally beaten.

Asensio drives the free-kick off the Eibar bar.

Gil will miss the next game for Eibar vs. Levante UD.

20 minute mark, goal-less at the Alfredo di Stefano and Gil is carded.

It has to be remembered that Madrid's defeats at home (3) in LaLiga have come to sides who are in the lower part of the table... Cadiz, Alaves and Levante.

The hope for Mendilibar is that Madrid's thoughts are more fixed on the Champions League and El Clasico fixtures.

Eibar win a corner but Soares heads well wide. Just the one stop from Courtois in the opening 17 minutes of action (the Diop effort). Marcelo enjoying swathes of space on the Madrid left.

Bryan Gil flitting in and out of the game for Eibar. After his full Spain debut this international break, parent club Sevilla have slapped a 100 million euro buy-out clause to warn off would-be suitors.

Casemiro falls in the box and looks optimistically for a spot kick. Nothing doing for the match official. Madrid very much in control now after VAR just confirms there was no contact with the Eibar defender.

A major let-off for Eibar who are looking somewhat nervous.

Hold up... the flag was raised ...Benzema offside

Gooooooool . Marcelo to Benzema and the Frenchman nods home.

Eibar probe as Diop forces Courtois to save well. Bryan Gil in action as Benzema almost puts Madrid ahead but a fine save from Dimitrovic deprives the French striker. Way to easy for Benzema to get through the Eibar rear-guard.

Both Eibar and Getafe are the lowest scoring sides in LaLiga this season... finding the target just 22 times during the campaign.

All set.... off we go... Eibar start the game

Real Madrid may just have one eye on forthcoming games.... Liverpool midweek in the UCL and El Clasico next weekend as they welcome FC Barcelona to the Alfredo di Stefano.

19C/66F in the Spanish capital today, a mild day and ideal for football with plenty of cloud cover about.

Today's match official is Isidro Díaz de Mera Escuderos.

The teams are in the tunnel poised to take to the pitch. Madrid will sport their iconic all white kit with Eibar too in their traditional navy and red stripes.

Mendilibar's Eibar are win-less in their past five outings and will need a big, big performance to leave the capital with a point/ points this aftternoon.

Real Madrid in a solid run of form at present with Zidane's men very much alive in LaLiga and facing Liverpool in the quarter final stage in the 2020/21 Champions League with the first leg next week.

The scene at the Alfredo di Stefano as kick-off looms

Just one win for Eibar in all LaLiga meetings between both sides, that 3-0 victory coming in Ipurua back in November 2018.

A win over Eibar today would see Real Madrid recover second place in the table with Barcelona not in action until Monday where Koeman's side face Valladolid.

Huesca's win over Levante last night saw the side from Aragon leap-frog both Alaves and Eibar as the dog-fight to avoid the drop gets intense with the season winding down.

This fine Copa 90 documentary video from their first season in the top flight is a fine introduction to SD Eibar

Could this be the season where the Eibar dream comes to an end? This is the seventh campaign in the top flight for the Basque side from a town of just 27,000 inhabitants with the football team putting the name of Eibar on the global map. Just 4 wins all season does not bode well for Mendilibar's men.

Nacho on thin ice

Nacho will have to be extremely careful not to get booked when Real Madrid take on Eibar this afternoon. With Sergio Ramos out injured for the next month, Zidane's third choice centre-back will step in to fill the vacancy.

Full story here:

The corresponding fixture last season, once again saw Real Madrid run out 3-1 winners on the day but the game was a tighter affair than the scoreline would suggest.

In all Eibar's seven seasons in LaLiga, just once have the Basque side been able to take points from Madrid in the Spanish capital (October 2016) when the Armeros bagged a 1-1 draw at the Santiago Bernabeu. The rest of their visits to Madrid have ended in defeat,

Sergio Ramos is the major absentee for Real Madrid with the defender out through injury.

There was also good news for Zidane earlier in the week, however, with Toni Kroos and Eden Hazard returning to training. Hazard has been left out of the squad for Saturday, but Kroos returns along with Mariano Diaz and Alvaro Odriozola.

"There's a lot of games coming thick and fast and we won't do anything stupid. We'll see how to manage it," Zidane said of how the returning players would be handled in Friday's press conference.

As for Real Madrid, Zidane opts for the following XI:

Let's bring you the team news starting with the visitors struggling to avoid the drop:

Kick-off at the Alfredo di Stefano stadium in the Valdebebas complex starts at 16:15 CEST.

Hello and a very warm welcome to our live LaLiga coverage from Valdebebas as Real Madrid face Basque outfit SD Eibar.