On 24 May, one of the matches of the 36th round of the Spanish football championship took place. Real Madrid and Rayo Vallecano Spain met.
Spanish Championship, round 36
Real Madrid v Rayo Vallecano (Spain) - 2-1 (1-0)
Goals: Benzema (31), Rodrygo (89) - R. de Tomas (84).
Warnings: Alvaro Garcia (33), Unai Lopez (51), Comesagna (53), Carvajal (60)
Real Madrid defeated Rayo Vallecano in a tense La Liga encounter at the Santiago Bernabeu. The hosts dominated from the start and took the lead in the 31st minute thanks to a Karim Benzema goal. Rayo Vallecano tried to get back into the game and received a yellow card just two minutes later when Alvaro Garcia was penalised for a foul. It was a worrying sign for the visitors as the game continued to develop at a fast pace. In the second half, Rayo Vallecano tried to get back into the game, but it was clear that their efforts were unsuccessful. The yellow cards continued to fly and three more were issued in the first twelve minutes of the second half. In the 63rd minute, Rayo Vallecano decided to make two substitutions as Palazon and Tremo replaced Chavarria and Comesana. Real Madrid followed suit in the same minute, releasing Seballos in place of Valverde.
The game continued to be a tense encounter as both teams looked for a potential match-winner. Rayo Vallecano made their third substitution in the 69th minute, releasing Camelo in place of de Tomas. Zidane responded by inserting Asensio in place of Modric. The game took a dramatic turn in the 83rd minute when Rayo Vallecano made two substitutions. They replaced Falcao and Sanchez with Garcia and Lopez respectively. Real Madrid also made a third change, replacing Rüdiger with Tchouameni. After these substitutions, Rayo Vallecano began to gain momentum and scored in the 84th minute thanks to a de Tomas goal. But Real had other ideas, and in the final minutes of the game they snatched victory thanks to a Rodrigo goal. Despite Rayo Vallecano's best efforts, Real Madrid were too strong and got the win. This result will go a long way towards boosting their confidence as the race for the La Liga title continues.
The next round of fixtures will see Sevilla v Real Madrid and Rayo Vallecano v Villarreal.
| Real | Rayo Vallecano | |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Goals on goal | 6 |
| 12 | Shots | 13 |
| 3 | Blocked kicks | 2 |
| 6 | Kicks from the penalty area | 7 |
| 6 | Kicks from behind the penalty box | 6 |
| 11 | Offences | 14 |
| 5 | Corner | 2 |
| 4 | Offsides | 0 |
| 62% | Possession of the ball | 38% |
| 1 | Yellow cards | 3 |
| 0 | Red cards | 0 |
| 5 | Safeties by goalkeeper | 1 |
| 715 | Total assists | 437 |
| 654 | Accurate passes | 371 |
| 91% | Accuracy of transmissions | 85% |