BARCELONA, April 3: With Karim Benzema back from injury, Real Madrid got back on the road to winning the Spanish league after the France striker scored two penalties in a 2-1 win at Celta Vigo on Saturday.
Benzema, who also had another spot kick saved in Vigo, missed Madrid’s 4-0 defeat to Barcelona before the two-week international break as he recovered from a left-leg injury.
Celta took the game to the league leaders, only to be undone by some rash defending in its area and some borderline calls by the referee.
The third penalty that set up Benzema’s 70th-minute winner came after a questionable foul when Ferland Mendy stumbled over the leg of Kevin Vázquez.
Celta also had a goal waived off in the first half after a video review.
Madrid opened a 12-point gap over Sevilla and Atlético Madrid and a 15-point gap over Barcelona.
Benzema’s brace took his tally to 34 goals across all competitions.
Benzema also equaled Alfredo Di Stéfano as Madrid’s third-highest scorer in the La Liga with 216. He trails only Raúl González (228) and Cristiano Ronaldo (312).
Benzema put Madrid ahead in the 19th from the spot after Madrid’s Éder Militão was fouled by Nolito.
Despite falling behind early, Celta scored in the 52nd when Aspas played the ball wide to Javi Galán, who squared the ball back into the heart of the area for the unmarked Nolito to beat Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois for 1-1.
After Celta’s Jeison Murillo tripped substitute Rodgyro in the box, Benzema’s spot kick in the 64th was saved by Dituro, who was wearing a baseball cap to keep out the glare from the setting sun.
But a few minutes later, Dituro couldn’t stop Benzema’s third spot kick just inside the left post.
Atlético Madrid vs Alavés
Atlético’s sixth consecutive win moved it into third place level on points with Sevilla after a 4-1 result against Alavés.
Félix opened with an 11th-minute header. After Gonzalo Escalante leveled for Alavés, Suárez fired in a spot kick in the 75th following Florian Lejeune’s foul of Matheus Cunha. Félix finished off a shot by Cunha that he set up for his seventh goal in his last eight appearances. Suárez then rounded off the rout from a pass by Cunha.
Other results
Levante handed Villarreal a 0-2 loss while Javier Aguirre’s debut as Mallorca’s new coach ended with a 1-0 loss at Getafe.
Also, Real Betis routed Osasuna 4-1 to stay within range of a Champions League place on Sunday while Athletic Bilbao ended a two-match winless streak with a 2-1 win over Elche. (AP)
