Real 5, Sporting 0.live

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• 52'Ronaldo is a very lucky man here as he clearly kicks out at Cases in the middle of the park after an altercation between the two. That could easily have been a yellow or even a red, but the referee waves play on despite having a terrific view of the incident. Odd decision indeed!
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• 54' MISCUE FROM RONALDO! The former Manchester United attacker, who continues to search for his hat-trick, runs in behind the defence after a neat pass from Benzema, but the resulting strike on goal is skewed disappointingly wide! It seemed like he just didn't have his bearings there, as he had time to take the touch!
• 52' Ronaldo is a very lucky man here as he clearly kicks out at Cases in the middle of the park after an altercation between the two. That could easily have been a yellow or even a red, but the referee waves play on despite having a terrific view of the incident. Odd decision indeed!
• 50'

  Miguel Ángel Guerrero Martín
  50' First yellow card of the match and the signs aren't good for Sporting as they appearing to be losing their discipline out there. The guilty party this time is Guerreo, who goes into the book for a cynical and needless hack at Varane in the Madrid half after the Frenchman had already cleared the ball.
• 48' It will be interesting to see Sporting's mindset for this second period as it goes without saying that they are not going to get anything out of this match. However, Fernandez will likely have advised his charges to treat the half as if it was a fresh match at 0-0, that way they can hope to reclaim a little bit of pride. Madrid might have something to say about that, though...
• 46'

  Alen Halilović
  Daniel Arnaud N'Di
  46' Sporting make a change of their own as Halilovic makes way for Daniel N'Di. Not the best game to be entering the action at half-time - when you are 5-0 down.
• 46'

  Gareth Bale
  Jesé Rodríguez Ruiz
  46' A change to report at the break from Zidane as Bale is forced off what appears to be a small hamstring injury he picked up near the end of the first half. His replacement will be Jese, who will certainly be eager to join in on the goalscoring fun.
• 46' We are back under way at Santiago Bernabeu!
• Half time at Santiago Bernabeu as the referee adds on barely any stoppage time. Real Madrid have blown away Sporting in the opening 45 minutes of this Liga clash, and currently lead 5-0 at the break, with Ronaldo and Benzema getting two a-piece after Bale opened the scoring with a glancing header. The visitors have just been demolished by the attacking players of Los Blancos, who seem as hungry as ever to tally up more goals! Sorry, Sporting, but there is another half to come shortly...
• 43' Unclear at this point as to how much added time will be signaled by the referee as it would almost be cruel to Sporting to play on the pitch any more than required for them, as they as on the end of an absolute hammering at the moment - and it is only halfway done!
• 41'

  Francisco Román Alarcón Suárez
  41' A stunning assist from Isco as the former Malaga man completely takes out the Sporting defence with a lofted pass into the path of Benzema!
• 41'

  Karim Benzema
  41' GOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAALLLL FOR REAL MADRID! THAT'S FIVE! Isco pops up in his favourite position between the opposition midfield and defence, and juggles the ball with a couple of lovely touches before lifting a delightful pass over for Benzema, who takes into stride before stabbing a strike past the oncoming Cuellar! FIVE-NIL!
• 38' Halilovic, who is of course on loan at Sporting from from Madrid's clasico rivals, Barcelona, picks up the ball around 25 yards out and looks to shift the ball on to the other foot in order to get a strike away, but ends up being commandingly dispossessed by the long leg of Varane, who continues to impress in the Spanish Primera Division.
• 36' GREAT SAVE FROM CUELLAR! Ronaldo breaks the offside trap and latches on to a neat pass from Modric into the left of the penalty area. He attempts to lift a strike over the oncoming Sporting keeper, who keeps himself big to make the solid block! Luckily for the Portuguese, the flag eventually goes up for offside anyway...
• 34' Marcelo, typically when playing at the Santiago Bernabeu, is featuring basically as an extra winger down the left wing for the Blancos and has went on a number of exciting, marauding runs to the byline. It is just unfortunate for him that most of Real Madrid's better play so far has came on the opposite flank on the right.
• 32' Fifteen minutes to go in the first half and Sporting really should be aiming to claw at least one goal back before the break, to give something even as small as that to think about during half-time. At the moment, Zidane is currently facing the easiest team talk of his line - more of the same, he will no doubt encourage!
• 30' Gareth Bale is playing some of his best football in a Real Madrid shirt at the moment and is going for his second goal of the game here with a free kick opportunity from around 30 yards out. The Welshman goes for it instead of Ronaldo, but it is disappointing as the strike goes high and wide into the stand, as Cuellar breathes a sigh of relief.
• 28' Where on earth has the opening 28 minutes or so has this game gone?! Time has absolutely flown by so far in this Spanish Primera Division clash and we have seen no less than four goals in the first third of the match. It is just unfortunate for Sporting that every one has been tallied up by a Real Madrid forward!
• 26' It should be five for Madrid! Ronaldo picks up possession a yard or so inside the box and goes searches for a quickfire hat-trick, attempting to find space to get the shot away. He eventually does so, but it is fortuitously blocked over the bar before Cuellar is forced into making the save!
• 24' SAVE FROM NAVAS! Jony, who has one of the only Sporting players with pass marks so far, cuts in from the flank once again and sends a fizzing strike aimed at the bottom corner, only to be foiled by the Madrid keeper, who somehow gets across goal to make the block with the tip of his glove! Superb work between the sticks there!
• 22' Menendez ventures into some space down the wing and then skips past a challenge before standing up a lovely cross deep to the back post. Guerrero attempts to get on the end of it, but Navas takes the pressure completely off his defence with a terrific claim out of the air after proactively coming off his line.
• 20' Sporting Gijon are in big trouble here. You need to feel a bit for Abelardo Fernandez in the dugout for the visitors because there isn't really much he can do at the moment to improve his team! They have been shocking at the back, but the result at the moment is also down to some blistering attacking play from Los Blancos!
• 18'

  Daniel Carvajal Ramos
  18' Superb from Carvajal as he gallops down the right before finding Ronaldo for his second goal!
• 18'

  Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro
  18' GOOOOAAAAAAALLLLLLL FOR MADRID! THIS IS GETTING EMBARRASSING FOR SPORTING NOW! Carvajal has displayed tonnes of attacking ambition so far in the match and records an assist this time with a low cross into the edge of the six-yard box, where Ronaldo smashes home with a predatory finish! Four-nil!
• 16' The next few minutes in the match are so incredibly vital for Sporting. The match is basically beyond them now, but they can still at least strive to keep the scoreline remotely respectable, even with Madrid looking like scoring whenever they venture into the final third!
• 14' Well, I think we can all have a little moment to compose ourselves now after that was a breathless opening portion of the match! Sporting have massive, massive problems here as Real Madrid are clearly coming out to prove a point and entertain their home fans! This could easily be result ending in the double figures...
• 12'

  Gareth Bale
  12' Bale is playing so superbly at the moment and has proved he can assist as well as score, with a fantastic cross for Benzema to smash home!
• 12'

  Karim Benzema
  12' GOOOAAAAAAAALLLLLL FOR REAL MADRID! A QUITE STUNNING START IN THIS LIGA MATCH! Carvajal drives down the right channel with pace before threading a pass into space for Bale, who subsequently clips a teasing cross to the back post. Benzema is on hand to find the net with a terrific bicycyle kick, meaning Madrid's front three have all scored, and we are only 12 minutes in! Three-nil!
• 9'

  Karim Benzema
  9' Benzema turns provided once again this season with a quite delightful pass into the feet of Ronaldo!
• 9'

  Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro
  9' GOOOOOAAAALLL!! GOOOAAAALLLL FOR REAL MADRID! WHAT A START AT SANTIAGO BERNABEU! Benzema makes his way into the Sporting box and decides against going for the shot, instead opting to send a lovely pass into the feet of Ronaldo. The Ballon d'Or nominee then swivels sharply before sending a lashed strike into the top left corner! Two-nil! Sporting are sinking without a trace!
• 7'

  Toni Kroos
  7' A set-piece assist for Kroos here as the German curls a lovely cross to the front post for Bale from a corner kick!
• 7'

  Gareth Bale
  7' GOOOOAAAAAAALLLLL FOR REAL MADRID! AN EARLY LEAD FOR LOS BLANCOS! Kroos stands over a corner kick deep down the right flank and then steps up to whip a wicked cross to the near post, where Bale rises high above Sergio to glance a header home! One-nil!
• 5' Jony attempts to take the game to Real Madrid in these opening stages with a driving run down the right wing before eventually darting into a dangerous position inside the opposition box. Before he can get a shot away, though, the retreating Modric is on hand to make the vital interception!
• 3' Bale, who scored a superb hat-trick in Madrid's previous game which was a 5-0 win over Deportivo, collects the ball deep down the right wing and typically cuts inside on his left foot before whipping a cross into the box, looking for Ronaldo. Luis is on hand to clear at the front post for Sporting, though.
• 1' We are under way at Santiago Bernabeu!
• The teams are making their way to the pitch and we are almost ready for kick-off!
• Sporting (4-2-3-1): Cuellar; Lora, Luis, Mere, Isma; Sergio, Cases; Jony, Halilovic, Menendez; Guerrero.
• Real Madrid (4-3-3): Navas; Carvajal, Varane, Pepe, Marcelo; Kroos, Modric, Isco; Bale, Benzema, Ronaldo.
• TEAM NEWS...
• The stats don't point to anything other than a Real Madrid victory today. The capital club have lost just one of their last 13 league games against Sporting, and lost just one of their last 27 Liga games overall, which came against Barcelona in the Clasico. Los Blancos play before Atletico Madrid and Barcelona this afternoon, and will be hoping to record a comprehensive victory to apply some pressure on their title rivals.
• Sporting are embroiled in a relegation battle this campaign and once again find themselves striving to avoid a return to the Segunda division. They have accumulated just 15 points from their opening 18 games and currently sit in 18th – two points away from safety. Abelardo Fernandez's men have lost seven out of their last eight league games, with the latest defeat coming at the hands of Villarreal in a 2-0 result at El Madrigal.
• The match today has indeed been overshadowed by the fact that Madrid, as well as their city rivals, Atletico, have had a transfer ban imposed on them by FIFA for allegedly illegally transferring and registering players under the age of 18. Both teams will appeal the decision, claiming complete innocence, but as the ban will not come into affect until the summer, we may see quite a bit of buying and selling activity within the Spanish capital this month.
• The World Cup winner couldn't really have had a better start to his tenure as head coach, as last week his side ran out emphatic 5-0 winners over Deportivo at home, with a Gareth Bale hat-trick and a double from Karim Benzema sealing the three points. However, Zidane will be aware of the fact that there will be much tougher tasks to come this campaign.
• The manner of the performances have also been an issue, too, as former boss Rafa Benitez was accused from some quarters within the club of being pragmatic in his approach to games, with the attacking play not being as entertaining as the Santiago Bernabeu faithful are accustomed to. All of these factors resulted in the dismissal of the Spaniard, who was subsequently replaced by Castilla boss and former Real Madrid playing legend, Zinedine Zidane.
• Los Blancos have endured a rather tumultuous first half of the season and currently find themselves 3rd in the table, four points behind leaders, Atletico Madrid. This doesn't sound particularly bad all in itself, but combine this with an embarrassing exit from the Copa del Rey for fielding an ineligble player, as well as comprehensive defeats against their title rivals, Atleti and Barcelona, and it isn't too rosy in the Spanish capital.
• Good afternoon football fans! Welcome to LIVE coverage of the Spanish Primera Division encounter between Real Madrid and Sporting Gijon from Santiago Bernabeu!