It took Atletico until the start of the second period to get to grips with the European champions, but came out a different side after the break.
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“He was phenomenal. In the first half he didn’t lose a single ball”, added Zidane on the Spaniard.
Without Bale and Ronaldo, Karim Benzema is an average striker who can’t do anything for Real Madrid and even his goal scoring ratio is pathetic when compared to the likes of Luis Suarez, Robert Lewandowski and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Cristiano Ronaldo savoured derby delight again with yet another treble as Real Madrid opened up a four-point lead at the top of La Liga. He will surely be disappointed by the poor refereeing as he looks to win his fourth Ballon d’Or this year.
“I never had any doubt in my mind”, Zidane said. There is so much expected of him, but he is ahead of the rest. Bale has netted in each of his past three matches in all competitions and has 11 goals to his name overall.
Spanish radio station Cadena Cope revealed the alleged exchange when the pair came to blows in the changing rooms, with the three-time Ballon d’Or victor responding to Koke’s alleged slur by saying, ‘A f****t with a lot of money, you b******’.
CR7, who has also been vocal in his belief that he is the most deserving player to win the award, also repeated his stance after the impressive victory.
The 31-year old is the favorite for this year’s Ballon d’Or after winning the Uefa Champions League and the Uefa Euro 2016. “I’m confident because this has been the best season of my career”. What matters to us is how we approach the game and read the emotional aspect of it being the last League match against our arch-rivals here. But the voting doesn’t depend on me so I can’t allow myself to become obsessed with it. We’ve done things well so far and we want to continue in this vein. This year has been wonderful for me, with all the trophies. He certainly backed those comments up with his best performance of the season.
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Ronaldo can boast a sensational record against Atletico during his time at Real, scoring 15 goals and providing eight assists in 25 competitive games.
