Category Archives: La Liga

Casemiro helped put Real Madrid to the top of the table

Midfielder Casemiro scored both goals when Real beat Sevilla 2-1 in round 20 of La Liga on January 18.

The match between the second and fourth place teams was intense. As the host, but Real only accounts for 54% of possession. Meanwhile, Sevilla has many situations that threaten goal keeper Thibaut Courtois, an unrecognized goal and a 1-1 goal. Real took three points mainly thanks to two flashy moments of Casemiro, who played in a defensive midfielder position.

The midfield set up to help Real win is becoming familiar, especially when the frontline lacks many important players. Due to injuries, Eden Hazard and Gareth Bale have not been able to play yet. Karim Benzema also only came in from the middle of the second half. This is why Zinedine Zidane coach Lucas Vazquez started with Luka Jovic and Rodrygo.

Still, Real is making a difference by individuals who know how to turn the game around. Casemiro did this in the 57th minute with the opener. After receiving Jovic’s heel strike, the Brazilian midfielder went down to the ball to cross the goalkeeper Vaclik.

After the opening goal, Casemiro also played a hero with a goal to set the victory in the 69th minute. Sevilla’s defense was not tight, leaving the Brazilian midfielder comfortably headed in the middle of the box after a cross from the right.

Between the two tables of Casemiro, Sevilla equalized a goal thanks to De Jong. This is also a rare mistake moment of Varane defender – Militao. El Haddadi fell, but promptly pushed the ball to De Jong into the penalty area and shot into the far corner to beat Courtois.

The goal from De Jong’s curling shot was the 13th Real goal in 20 matches from the beginning of the La Liga season. Compared to Atletico Madrid, the team with the best clean sheet, the Bernabeu hosts only one more goal.

After the only mistake, Real crafts were reorganized enough to protect the results. In addition, the midfield also maintained the pressure and adjusted the tempo of the match, contributing to making Casemiro a hero.

Winning an important match, Real climbed to the top with a distance of three points more than Barca. In the late match against Granada, Barca need to win to regain the number one position. In this match, coach Quique Setien will debut the fans after replacing Ernesto Valverde.