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The champions responded to Barcelona’s win with a victory of their own at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium.
Real Madrid stayed within touching distance of Barcelona after they beat Valencia 2-0 in their La Liga clash at the Santiago Bernabeu on Thursday night.
Going into the match, Madrid knew they had to deliver a positive response after Barcelona extended their lead at the top with a 2-1 win over Real Betis on Wednesday night.
Madrid's uninspiring first half
The Blaugranes moved eight points clear of Madrid before Carlo Ancelotti’s men played tonight.
However, Madrid responded well as they clawed back the point gap to five following a comfortable win over Che.
The champions started with an attacking intent, but Valencia, who were with a new coach following the sacking of Gennaro Gattuso, were able to deal with the early threat.
Following their bright early start, Madrid’s tempo dropped with Valencia unbothered at the back. Voro’s men did suffer a real scare, though, as Antonio Rudiger headed Madrid in front just before halftime.
However, luckily for the away side, they went into the break with the scores goalless after the header was ruled out by VAR following a foul in the build-up.
Madrid's perfect response
Valencia’s luck ran out in the second half, though, as Madrid took the lead seven minutes after the restart through a special from Marco Asensio.
Asensio’s sensational strike gave Madrid the lift they needed, and they doubled their lead almost immediately through Vinicius Jr.
But moments after the second, Madrid were given a scare as captain and talisman Karim Benzema left the pitch with a suspected injury.
It did not affect Ancelotti’s men, though, as they continued to dominate the game. Things went from bad to worse for Valencia after Gabriel Paulista was sent off for a blatant kick on Vinicius.
Although Madrid were never able to get another goal after the red card, Los Blancos held sealed a comfortable 2-0 win to go five points behind Barcelona.
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