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Zidane frustrated with Real Madrid’s poor start

Instead they will have to share the record of 16 straight wins set by Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona side in the 2010-11 season.

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Real Madrid played much better and they start attacking from the first minute.

Real Madrid old boy Denis Cheryshev’s powerful strike from the edge of the area had to be tipped over by Kiko Casilla.

With Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo back in the side, Real Madrid looked to get off to flying side against a rival that has never won in the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium and they forced 6 corners in the first 10 minutes.

Real Madrid remained three points clear of Barcelona at the top of LaLiga as both sides dropped points on Wednesday night. Nacho, replacing the injured Pepe, will pair up with Sergio Ramos in central defence, flanked by the full-backs Dani Carvajal and Marcelo.

Bale was well off target with a left-footed strike from 25 yards as the half entered its final 10 minutes, with Benzema’s header still the only true opening they had created.

Real Sociedad striker William Jose scored twice against his former team to lead a 4-1 win over Las Palmas.

No penalty was given Real’s way at the start of the half despite Ramos’ claims that his shot had been blocked by a hand after Asenjo made a hash of gathering a free-kick into the box.

Ramos atoned for conceding a spot-kick by towering above the Villarreal defence to head home a James Rodriguez corner in the 48th minute, and despite significantly raising their game they were unable to claim an historic victor.

“In the first half in general the team was not intense enough, we were not plugged in properly”, Zidane said.

Morata did come close by steering a header into the turf that brought a stunning reaction stop from Asenjo, who might have been facing a penalty had Bruno’s clumsy late challenge on Ramos brought anything more than unanswered fury from the stands.

Both Bale and Benzema were substituted, while Ronaldo stayed on to chase a late victor and showed some urgency in the final flourish.

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Domestically they are hoping to win the league for the first time since the 2011-12 season.

Real Madrid's Karim Benzema reacts after scoring during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Espanyol and Real Madrid at RCDE stadium in Cornella Llobregat Spain Sunday Sept. 18 2016