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It wasn't pretty at all but Real Madrid managed to collect all three points against Malmo thanks to a brace by Cristiano Ronaldo. The Swedish team never tried to do too much and parked the bus instead hoping to hold to a 0-0 draw against Los Blancos. That gameplan was dismantled as soon as Ronaldo scored Real's opener in the 29th minute and paved the way to what was a comfortable but sloppy win for Madrid.
Rafa Benítez decided to make some rotations and kept Marcelo and Luka Modric on the bench. Those two players are crucial for Madrid's offensive system because of their creativity, even more when Benítez replaced them with Arbeloa and Casemiro. Both of them completed a decent match but their team missed Marcelo and Modric very badly. It's fair to say that Madrid made a mistake by refusing to sign a pure left-back to replace Marcelo. The Brazilian must stay healthy if Madrid want to win any trophies this season.
In general, Benítez's men did not move the ball quickly enough to break Malmo's wall. Casemiro is not a great passer -- his diagonal long balls are great though -- and Isco seems to be out of place ever since the season started. The Spanish playmaker has delivered a couple of game-winning assists lately, but his not as consistent as he was and considering his current form James will be a key addition to this team once the Colombian recovers from his injury.
The second half was very poor and Malmo had a chance to fight for the equalizer until Ronaldo put the 0-2 and the nail in Malmo's coffin as the game reached the 90th minute. The Portuguese became Real Madrid's all-time leading scorer alongside Raúl. The Madrid Derby against Atlético seems like the perfect time to break Raúl's record and give his team the win but Simeone and his men will definitely not be easy to beat.
The coaching staff will now have three days to get ready for Atlético -- they lost 1-2 to Benfica today -- and get James, Danilo, Ramos, Bale and Pepe in shape for that game. It will be interesting to see whether those five players are able to make it in time for the Derby or not, but their team surely miss them.
All things considered, this was a good win for Real Madrid. No more injuries, a clean sheet for Navas and three points that keep things even with PSG for the first spot in the group. The French side and Madrid will now battle for that spot during the next two European games but that will not happen until October 21, when Benítez and his men will visit Le Parc des Princes.