Two goals from Karim Benzema in the first 10 minutes of Real Madrid’s clash with Atletico Bilbao on Wednesday evening was enough to see the Los Blancos carry all three points and extend their lead at the top of the La Liga table.

After a disappointing 0-0 draw against Cadiz at the weekend and at the Santiago Bernabeu, Real Madrid were let off the hook as Sevilla and Barcelona played 0-0 on Tuesday.

Therefore, Carlo Ancelotti’s side knew that a return to winning ways would do their title challenge lots of good. Real Madrid were lively from the start, and it was Benzema who led from the front with the first goal of the game in the 4th minutes from a spectacular strike from the edge of the box, which surprised the Atletico Bilbao defense.

The French striker was also on hand to poke home a low cross across the face of goal three minutes later.

However, Bilbao pulled one back after just 9 minutes of play through Ohian Sancet, although neither of the two teams could have added to the scoreline afterward.

The win puts Real Madrid eight points ahead of their nearest challenger Sevilla while the Capital club’s next game will come on the 2nd of January 2022 away at Getafe.

Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid slipped further away from their title defense after losing to Granada earlier.

João Felix had given Diego Simeone’s side an early lead in the 2nd minute of the game, but it was not enough as Granada equalized through Darwin Marchis in the 17th minute of the game.

João Felix had a goal disallowed for a foul just before half-time, but the home side took the lead on the hour mark when Jorge Molina scored the winner.

The striker had scored a hattrick against Real Mallorca at the weekend in Granada’s 4-1 victory.

Written by: Daniel Ademiju Idowu