Jude Bellingham back with a bang as Real Madrid brush aside Cadiz

By Sports Desk November 26, 2023

Jude Bellingham scored on his return to action as Real Madrid beat lowly Cadiz 3-0 to move to the top of LaLiga.

Bellingham had missed the last two games for Los Blancos after suffering a shoulder injury in the 0-0 draw with Rayo Vallecano which also saw him ruled out on England’s Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia.

But the 20-year-old looked back to his best as he scored for the 11th time in 12 league appearances this season after being set up by Rodrygo, whose earlier brace had set the away side on their way to an impressive win.

Real went close to taking the lead in the third minute when Dani Carvajal’s attempted cross took a big deflection and almost caught out goalkeeper Jeremias Ledesma, who was moving to his right in anticipation.

And the visitors did not have to wait long to break the deadlock in brilliant fashion, Rodrygo curling a right-footed shot into the top corner from just inside the area in the 14th minute.

Bellingham then failed to make enough contact on a dangerous cross from Luka Modric and the England midfielder also headed over after Chris Ramos sliced an attempted clearance back towards his own goal.

Cadiz were also creating chances and Roger Marti almost equalised with a left-footed shot which looked destined for the top corner until Andriy Lunin threw himself to his left and tipped the ball wide.

More goals always looked on the cards in an entertaining contest and, after Modric had struck the base of a post after 64 minutes, Real eventually doubled their lead on the counter-attack, Bellingham feeding Rodrygo to curl another superb finish beyond the despairing dive of Ledesma.

Rodrygo soon repaid the favour, finding Bellingham in acres of space on the left side of the area and he drilled a left-footed shot unerringly into the far corner.

With the points secure and games looming against Napoli in the Champions League on Wednesday and Granada in the league three days later, it was no surprise to see Carlo Ancelotti substitute his star duo four minutes after Bellingham’s goal.

To their credit, Cadiz continued to press forward in pursuit of a goal that their performance deserved and Brian Ocampo’s injury-time effort was well saved by Lunin, but the defeat leaves them 16th in the table, two points above the relegation zone.

Real moved a point above Girona at the top of the table ahead of the latter’s game at home to Athletic Bilbao on Monday.

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    Real Madrid have announced that Rodrygo and Lucas Vazquez are both set for a spell on the sidelines after sustaining muscle injuries in the first half against Osasuna.

    Rodrygo was taken off after just 20 minutes, while Vazquez lasted until half-time before making way.

    The Brazilian has seen a more limited role for Madrid this season, playing just 667 minutes in LaLiga so far, but has netted three goals and registered one assist in that time. He is reportedly set to be out for five to six weeks.

    He has also played the third-most crosses of any Los Blancos player in the Spanish top-flight (22), while he has attempted (32) and completed (14) the third-most dribbles in the squad so far this term.

    Vazquez's absence will reportedly be about a month, giving Carlo Ancelotti a headache at right-back, with Dani Carvajal already out for the season with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury.

    This news comes after Madrid confirmed on Saturday that Eder Militao required surgery on an ACL tear he suffered in the first half of the same game.

  • Bellingham 'a little bit too nice' in Real Madrid goal drought Bellingham 'a little bit too nice' in Real Madrid goal drought

    Jude Bellingham suggested he had previously "done a bit too much" for his Real Madrid team-mates and "been a little bit too nice" after ending his goal drought.

    England superstar Bellingham scored 23 times for Madrid in all competitions in the 2023-24 season, his first with the club.

    But prior to their 4-0 win over Osasuna in LaLiga on Saturday, he was yet to get off the mark for this campaign.

    Bellingham netted Madrid's second goal, with a Vinicius Junior hat-trick accounting for the others, yet he is still lagging behind the efforts of previous seasons.

    The 21-year-old has played 1,118 minutes this term, having netted every 158 minutes in his debut Madrid campaign.

    Bellingham has not underperformed against his expected goals total across a season since marginally doing so for Borussia Dortmund in 2020-21, but his sole goal in 2024-25 has come from chances worth 3.1 xG.

    His shot conversion rate of 4.35% is comfortably a new low at Dortmund or Madrid, too.

    Those numbers come with the context of Bellingham's altered role in the team, however, as Carlo Ancelotti makes room for star signing Kylian Mbappe in the XI.

    "A lot of people were talking about it because last year I scored loads of goals," Bellingham told Real Madrid TV of his goal drought. "But I think I'm playing a different role this year. I'm doing different things in different parts of the pitch.

    "It's one of those things, I'll do anything for the team. Maybe I've done a bit too much and been a little bit too nice.

    "From now on, I think I'll get a feeling for it, and I'll try to carry on, but if not I'll keep trying to help the team in any way I can."

    Bellingham scored from one of two attempts against Osasuna, taking his fifth Opta-defined big chance of the season, while he laid on the assist for Vinicius' opener.

    "I felt like I did what I normally do," he explained. "But the only difference is that I managed to add a goal."

  • Militao set for surgery after suffering ACL injury in Osasuna victory Militao set for surgery after suffering ACL injury in Osasuna victory

    Real Madrid confirmed that defender Eder Militao will undergo surgery after sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear in their 4-0 win over Osasuna. 

    Militao was forced off in the 30th minute of their LaLiga clash at the Bernabeu on Saturday after hyperextending his knee in an attempt to reach the ball. 

    The Brazilian, who missed six months of last season with a serious knee injury, received treatment on the pitch before being stretched off with tears in his eyes.

    He becomes the second Madrid player to suffer an ACL injury this term after Dani Carvajal was sidelined for the rest of the campaign last month. 

    "Following tests carried out today on our player Eder Militao by the Real Madrid Medical Services, he has been diagnosed with a complete rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament with involvement of both menisci in his right leg. Militao will undergo surgery in the coming days," Real Madrid said in a statement.

    Either side of Militao's injury, team-mates Rodrygo and Lucas Vazquez were also forced off the pitch, overshadowing a much-needed return to winning ways. 

    Carlo Ancelotti said he will be looking to bring in some of the club's youth academy players into the first-team picture to fill the gaps in their injury-hit squad. 

    Madrid are also without Thibaut Courtois, Aurelien Tchouameni and David Alaba through injury, though Ancelotti was not thinking about making new signings in January.

    "I'm not thinking about signings right now because we have to prepare for games with the players we have," Ancelotti told a press conference.

    "Three injuries in the first half is quite rare. The demanding schedule doesn't allow the players to rest and be fresh.

    "We will evaluate the situation in the coming months. The only thing we can do is try to recover as many players as possible. We will see in January what happens."

    "Today (academy defender) Raul Asencio came off the bench and made a good contribution, (midfielder) Federico Valverde played fine as a full back. 

    "We did well last year when we had injuries, and we will do the same this year as well."

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