Real Madrid 2-0 Las Palmas: 5 Talking Points as Brahim Diaz takes center stage| La Liga 2023-24

Real Madrid beat Las Palmas 2-0 at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday, September 27.

Real Madrid plundered the visitors with quite a lot of chances but were unable to find the net as Alvaro Valles stood tall between the sticks. He made some stunning saves to deny Joselu in the opening phases of the game. But the hosts broke the deadlock through Brahim Diaz, as he opened the scoring for Real Madrid on the brink of halftime.

Real Madrid continued with their pursuit of another goal following the restart and were rewarded for it. Joselu doubled the hosts' lead as he guided in a perfect cross from Rodrygo to beat Valles.

Following the second, Real Madrid defended their lead quite comfortably as the substitutes took over and controlled the game for them. The duo of Vinicius and Rodrygo kept the visitors busy till the final whistle.

On that note, here's a look at the five biggest talking points from the game:

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#5 Brahim Diaz shines for Real Madrid

Brahim Diaz was the man of the match. The Spanish international put in a massive shift against Las Palmas. Diaz opened the scoring for the hosts as he put one past Alvaro Valles after receiving the ball from Lucas Vazquez.

The 24-year-old got his chance as Jude Bellingham was rested by Carlo Ancelotti. And he did not disappoint. Diaz was highly active throughout his stay on the pitch and was taken off in the 57th minute of the game in favor of Dani Ceballos.

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#4 Injury concerns for Real Madrid

David Alaba was another player who suffered a setback. He went down as he held his leg in discomfort. The Austrian international was subbed off in the 41st minute of the game and replaced by Lucas Vazquez. Los Blancos moved Nacho to the center back position, with Vazquez moving to the right back position.

With Eder Militao and Thibaut Courtois already sidelined for a long period of time, the Spanish giants would be hoping for more stability at the back. They would be hoping that this Alaba scare is not serious.

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#3 Vinicius Jr returns for Los Blancos

Vinicius Jr. returned to the pitch for Real Madrid. The Brazilian came on in the 57th minute of the game as he replaced Joselu. Vinicius featured nearly after a month for Los Blancos. His last appearance came against Celta Vigo on August 26, where he picked up a thigh injury.

The Brazilian made a speedy recovery and was back in training ahead of schedule. It was anticipated that he would play in the derby against Atletico Madrid too, but illness pushed his return. The fans loved his return, as he was received with a massive cheer by the Bernabeu.

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#2 Joselu with a mixed bag

Joselu scored Real Madrid's second goal of the night, but he surely could have bagged more. The Spaniard missed two big chances and had seven attempts on goal throughout his stay on the pitch.

He made his presence felt upfront throughout the game, but there were patches where he just did not have anything to contribute.

Joselu won two duels and created two chances. Ancelotti will have a big decision to make for their upcoming fixture against Girona. With Vinicius back in the mix, will Joselu be starting? This is something that will be interesting to see.

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#1 Real Madrid back to winning ways

Real Madrid returned to winning ways as they beat Las Palmas at their home ground after their humbling against Atletico Madrid, wherein they lost that game 3-1.

After their victory, Real Madrid are second in the league. Girona lead the charts with 19 points after 7 games, whereas Real Madrid are just one point away with 18 points.

Barcelona are placed third with 17 points after 7 games. The Catalans stumbled last week against Mallorca to award Real Madrid the chance of moving ahead of them.