Madrid neither faltered nor
stuttered in the absence of Xabi Alonso and Sami Khedira. Álvaro Arbeloa
slotted back into the team on his return from injury, shoring up the
shaky left side of defence, allowing Essien to move back into midfield,
while Luka Modric oozed class and vision in the Alonso role.
Zaragoza proved a stubborn opponent
and set out a solid stall, before falling to two strikes ‘made in
Argentina’ in the space of two minutes. Goals from Higuaín and Di María
midway through the first half quickly settled any nerves amongst the
home ranks.
The deadlock was broken when
Roberto made a splendid save from an Albiol header from a corner after
23 minutes, only for the ball to fall kindly for Higuaín to poke home.
Two minutes later, a double-whammy from Di María doubled the lead. The
Argentine’s first shot proved too hot for the Zaragoza ‘keeper to
handle, allowing the Argentine to fire into the empty net.
The home fans made their feelings
known as Real Madrid began to coast, with minds drifting to the upcoming
Champions League test against Borussia Dortmund. Only some brilliant
reflexes from Casillas and a dodgy offside call against Postiga kept out
the Zaragoza comeback.
Essien (’89), after some fine work
from Benzema on the break, and Modric (’92), with a measured left-foot
finish, capped off the victory, although there was no place on the
scoresheet for Cristiano, for all his huffing and puffing.
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