La Liga - Real Madrid 2 Valladolid 0 - Match Report
Los Blancos leave it late to seal 2-0 win over Valladolid
Mitch Freeley
Real Madrid escaped from a largely uninspiring display with two late goals securing a fortuitous 2-0 win over Real Valladolid in Santiago Solari's first LaLiga match in charge.
Vinicius Junior came off the bench to force an own goal off Kiko Olivas in the 83rd minute before Sergio Ramos ensured the European champions finished a poor showing on an upbeat note with a penalty five minutes later.
Valladolid had rattled the crossbar twice in the second half and will count themselves highly unfortunate not to have further opened the wounds inflicted during last weekend's El Clasico humiliation.
Solari, who replaced the sacked Julen Lopetegui following that 5-1 loss, presided over a 4-0 Copa del Rey victory over third-tier Melilla in the first match of his caretaker stewardship, but for the first 80 minutes, this was a sobering reminder of the work needed to mend a misfiring side.
Marcelo's absence afforded Sergio Reguilon a LaLiga debut and the left-back, the target of Ramos' fury during a training ground incident last month, created early opportunities that Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale both wasted.
The malaise eventually spread to the other end as only wasteful finishing from Antonito and Enes Unal prevented the home fans' whistles from growing louder.
Valladolid looked the more likely to break the deadlock after the interval with Thibaut Courtois' crossbar denying both Ruben Alcaraz and Toni Villa.
But it was to be a cruel end for the impressive visitors as Vinicius' heavily deflected shot left Jordi Masip with no chance, before Fernando Calero's sloppy foul on Benzema allowed Ramos to snap his side's five-game winless run in LaLiga, moving them temporarily to within four points of leaders Barcelona.
Goals/ Highlights
Goal! Sergio Ramos with a Panenka now from the penalty spot no less! Game over!
Goal! Vinicius Junior with the shot, and via a rebound, it's in!
Live Updates
Preamble
Now for Valladolid! Former Barca keeper Masip is between the sticks! 21-year-old Turkish striker Enes Ünal leads the line!
🙌🏻💜 ¡Alineación del Real Valladolid!#pucela #RealMadridRealValladolid pic.twitter.com/gyCtbGiOUN — Real Valladolid C.F. (@realvalladolid) November 3, 2018
Team News! First up Real Madrid. Bale, Benzema & Asensio seem to be making up the front three. Sergio Reguilón is in at left-back.
📝 Your @RealMadrid XI to face @realvalladolid!#RMLiga | #HalaMadrid pic.twitter.com/qOxFSgATUB — Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) November 3, 2018
Hello! Good afternoon and welcome to the live updates of Real Madrid Vs Valladolid in La Liga! It's caretaker coach Santiago Solari's first league game in charge of Los Blancos. Can the former midfielder reverse the fortunes of Real? Valladolid is currently in sixth place in the standings whilst Real are languishing in ninth place. Join me for Live Match Commentary of the game along with all the latest team news and match highlights at full time!