Real Madrid end season on an emphatic note - Real Madrid pulled off an emphatic win over Espanyol to end the season with flying colours . The win will give Los Blancos much needed confidence ahead of the Champions League final against Atletico Madrid in Lisbon on May 24 . Carlo Ancelotti’s men also confirmed a berth to play in the Champions League next season . Real had a slight hiccup before the start of the encounter with Cristiano Ronaldo injuring himself during the warm up . CR7 sustained a hamstring injury to limp off the ground . Ronaldos absence overshadowed Real Madrids 3-1 win over Espanyol after goals from Gareth Bale and Alvaro Morata (2) secured victory in their final La Liga game of the season. Ronaldo, who limped off with a muscle injury in the 1-1 draw at Real Valladolid earlier this month, sustained a problem in the warm-up and was replaced in the side by Isco.Question mark looms large over Ronaldo , whether he will be fit for the all important Champions League final . And the nine-time European champions could also be without Benzema for the clash in Lisbon after he came off in the 67th minute with an apparent groin complaint. Real were always in control and ensured victory with a late flurry from Benzemas replacement Morata, but the focus will firmly be on the prospects of their injured attacking pair prior to the showdown with Atletico and next months World Cup. The hosts took a while to find their rhythm without Portuguese talisman Ronaldo, the first real chance taking 13 minutes to arrive as Benzema headed over Marcelos left-wing cross. Marcelo then forced Kiko Casilla into a near-post stop with a shot from a tight angle before Sergio Ramos drew another save from the Espanyol goalkeeper from the resulting corner.Ramos, scorer of five goals in his last six games, continued to show signs of potentially adding to his tally, firing narrowly wide from long range in the 27th minute. But the best chance of the first half fell to Benzema, who cleverly worked his way past a couple of defenders inside the area only to be denied by a fine Casilla save. However, Carlo Ancelottis men finally found the back of the net in the 64th minute when Bale raced onto Benzemas clever reverse throughball and slotted in off the post. Espanyol missed a glorious chance to level almost immediately, Simao somehow missing the target when one-on-one with Iker Casillas.Morata effectively made sure of the points with a close-range finish in the 86th minute before Pizzi converted Sergio Garcias neat pass to halve the deficit.A second for Morata put the gloss on a straightforward win, but that will have done little to calm the tension surrounding the fitness of Ronaldo and Benzema.
Posted on: Sat, 17 May 2014 16:56:08 +0000
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