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Real Madrid were once again rescued by a well-taken penalty by captain Sergio Ramos, as Los Blancos edged past a dogged Athletic Club in their La Liga fixture tonight with yet another 1-0 victory.
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Zinedine Zidane made five changes to the squad after their derby win over Getafe on Friday, with Eden Hazard and Raphael Varane being the notable absentees due to minor injury concerns.
The game was characterised by excellent use of the width of the flanks by both sides as they generated chances aplenty. It was also a game that saw both teams squandering possession quite often in the middle of the pitch.
Both sides came tantalisingly close to getting on the scoresheet in the first five minutes of the game. Real Madrid winger Marco Asensio forcing Unai Simon into action in the third minute with a crisp free-kick while Bilbao striker Inaki Williams was denied by a brilliant sliding interception by Marcelo just a few minutes later.
It was a well-fought battle in the first 45 minutes, with both goalkeepers producing inspired displays between the sticks. After a bright start to the game, the possession changed frequently between both teams as the hot conditions gradually saw fatigue set in and the passing became sloppy.
In the second half, the Bilbao defence starting getting more bullish and committed tactical fouls on Real Madrid players who started piling up the pressure. In the 70th minute, Marcelo was fouled in the penalty box by midfielder Dani Garcia that led to a penalty after VAR consultation. Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos drilled into the bottom right corner to give the visitors the decisive lead in the match they would not relinquish.
So, as Real Madrid inch ever so close to their first La Liga title in three years, winning their seventh game on the spin, here are five major talking points from the game.
Five talking points from Real Madrid's 1-0 win over Athletic Bilbao
#5: Athletic Bilbao's rustiness in the final third left them frustrated
Athletic Bilbao had a good game against Real Madrid, at least for the first 60 minutes. They were not allowing the opposition a lot of space to create chances. Most importantly, they were successful in winning the ball back from Real Madrid midfielders, a task not many sides can claim to have completed successfully.
Bilbao's full-backs and wingers put in a tremendous shift and created a lot of opportunities that yielded nothing because of the profligacy of their attackers in the final third. Inaki Williams made some decent inroads into the Real Madrid box, but every time he either took an extra touch or two before firing the shot right at Thibaut Courtois or was dispossessed.
Despite being the focal point of the lion's share of forward-bound passes, Williams managed just one shot on target. He was bullied by Eder Militao throughout the game and despite clocking a top speed of 34 km/hr could not get ahead of the well-drilled Real Madrid defence.
#4: Real Madrid's squad depth came in handy tonight
Real Madrid squeezed past a stubborn Athletic side in tonight's fixture despite the fact that they were missing their best defensive performer in Raphael Varane and their creative force in Eden Hazard for the game. That was mostly because Militao in central defence and Asensio in attack provided a fair cover for the missing duo.
Such is the incredible depth of squad at Zinedine Zidane's disposal that he could afford to have players like Gareth Bale and Toni Kross warming the bench in such a key fixture.
As long as Real Madrid's key players in Ramos, Benzema, Modric, Carvajal and Courtois continue to deliver, Zidane can experiment and make use of his squad depth as the Merengues chase their first La Liga title in three years.
#3: Thibaut Courtois' disastrous first season at the club is in the rearview mirror now
Real Madrid went through a rollercoaster ride in the 2018-19 campaign where one of their most criticised players from that season being their goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.
It seems that Coutois has more than redeemed himself this campaign. He has been delivering what was promised when he was signed to replace Keylor Navas in the summer of 2018.
The Belgian has played a key role in the Madrid defence; Real Madrid have the best defensive records across Europe this season. They have conceded just 21 times in 34 games and boasts 17 clean sheets. Courtois has a decent lead over last season's Zamora trophy winner, Jan Oblak.
Against Athletic Bilbao, Courtois rarely mishandled the ball and made himself big on multiple occasions against incoming attackers as he was quick off his line to thwart incoming crosses and through balls.
#2: Captain cool Sergio Ramos to the rescue yet again
Sergio Ramos has always been the player to lead from the front at Real Madrid. Since the La Liga resumed in June, no player has been more involved in goals than the Spaniard for Los Blancos; in the last seven games, Ramos has scored five goals, three of them being from the penalty spot.
Ramos has now taken and converted 22 of his last penalties, a record that would make even some of the greatest No.9s of the game jealous. He scored against Bilbao with his usual calm demeanour from the spot, firing a perfectly-taken penalty driven into the bottom-right corner, beyond the Bilbao keeper who went the right way.
As always, Ramos had a solid game at the heart of Real Madrid's defence, making some well-timed interceptions. He also maintained a pass accuracy of 95 % in the game.
#1: Real Madrid have breathing space in the La Liga title race over Barcelona
Real Madrid were one point behind Barcelona in the title race before the resumption of La Liga in June. But now they are seven points clear at the top of the standings as they managed to keep their nerves in their exciting title race with their arch-rivals who have struggled to win games in recent times.
With their seventh win in as many games since the La Liga resumption, Real Madrid have maintained a 100% win record so far. They have now given themselves a breathing space in their La Liga title race with Barcelona who can't afford to drop any more points if they are to stay alive in the race.
After their win against a tough opponent like Athletic Bilbao, Real Madrid's only formidable remaining opponents are Villareal, who will be visiting them for the penultimate La Liga game of the season. It is quite possible that Real Madrid could be crowned champions before facing Villareal, so that game could be nothing more than a formality.
They can still afford to lose one more game and still retain a lead over Barcelona and thus hold an advantage going into the final four games of the season.
