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This was a dangerous match for Real Madrid. Eibar had two weeks to prepare this game while Ancelotti's men just got back home last Wednesday after the FIFA break. Furthermore, Eibar are a very tough team to play away, given their intensity and good pressing off the ball. Still, Real Madrid managed to get a simple, well-earned and deserved 0-4 win thanks to a solid performance by each one of the players.
Ancelotti decided to start Isco in Modric's spot when everybody thought that Sami Khedira was going to be the chosen one. It was a bold decision by the Italian coach, because Khedira would have brought that good physical presence in the midfield against a team that was going to fight after every ball.
Luckily enough for Ancelotti, Isco's defensive commitment to help Toni Kroos in Real's 4-4-2 formation was excellent, and James deserves some credit as well.
This game wasn't as easy as it looked, but Real put on a good and steady all around performance by having control of the possession and a good work on stopping the opposition's counterattacks. When James Rodríguez put his team ahead 0-1, Eibar tried to claw back for a point, but Cristiano Ronaldo finished their hopes right before half time off a brilliant play and assist by Dani Carvajal.
This game was pretty much over, as nobody expected Eibar to overcome a two-goal deficit, but Karim Benzema still wanted to score Real Madrid's third goal. The French striker has now scored a goal in Real's last five Liga BBVA games, proving that he's actually one of the best strikers in the world of football -- if not the best --.
There were a couple of questionable calls by the referee on Real's first and third goals, as Fernández Borbalán should have disallowed James' opening goal because of an obvious offside position by Ronaldo before the assist. Real Madrid's third goal wasn't as controversial, even though the Eibar players complaint about the ball being out of bounds when James crossed the ball.
The referee completed his bad night by pointing to the spot on Real Madrid's fourth goal, and moments later he did not call a clear penalty on Karim Benzema. Ronaldo had the chance to score his second goal -- his 20th in this Liga BBVA campaign having played just 11 matches --, and he did not miss from the spot.
Still, Real's 0-4 win was rightfully earned. It seems that Luka Modric's injury will not be as troublesome as some feared, although he will obviously be missed given how good of a player he is.