Eibar 0-2 Real Madrid: Bale and Ronaldo on target
Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo were on target as Real Madrid beat Eibar on Sunday, but Los Blancos once again failed to really get going.
The Welshman opened the scoring just before the break, heading home a Luka Modric cross, with Ronaldo converting a late penalty which was dubiously won by Lucas Vazquez.
Eibar, who are performing above expectations this season, had started well, with Sergi Enrich having the first shot on target. Keylor Navas, though, was equal to it.
Madrid then had a chane to open the scoring when Ronaldo was played clean through, only to be denied by home goalkeeper Asier Riesgo. Mateo Kovacic blazed the rebound over.
Just when it looked like there'd be no goals in the first half, Modric took a short corner, looked up and picked out Bale. The 26-year-old's flicked header beat Riesgo and Madrid had the lead.
Not much happened after the break, with both teams finding it hard to create chances. Ronaldo wanted a spot kick for a push in the area, while Navas was equal to any of Eibar's half chances.
The game was settled inside the final 10 minutes in controversial fashion. Subsitute Lucas drove into the box and hit the deck, with the referee immediately pointing to the spot. Replays suggested the contact was minimal, but Ronaldo rolled home from 12 yards.
Three points moves Madrid back to within six points of Barcelona, who beat Real Sociedad on Saturday, but the performance will do little to convince Rafael Benitez's critics he deserves a break.
