Real Madrid moved eight points clear of rivals FC Barcelona with a 2-0 victory over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday night.
Jude Bellingham returned from suspension and replaced Vinicius Junior who didn’t make the squad, while Nacho Fernandez came in for Eduardo Camavinga as Madrid’s changes from the win at CA Osasuna.
Rodrygo got the ball rolling on eight minutes after he charged into the edge of the area following Brahim Diaz’s ball and placed emphatically into the top corner.
Ernest Valverde's charges were handed another set-back in the form of a substitution before the half-hour mark as Yeray Alvarez made way for Dani Vivian after battling to carry on.
Bilbao attempted a reprieve a little later as a swift move on the counter-attack following a turnover led Alex Berenguer in, but timeous defending from Antonio Rudiger spared the host.
Rodrygo came close to grabbing a second goal early in the second period when he made a darting run towards the area and curled off the base of the upright – seeing the visitors off the hook.
Los Blancos didn’t stop probing, as a switch of play involving Diaz released midfielder Federico Valverde in on strike from a smart area, but he fired way over the target.
The Lions were very flat all-round as the host continued to show a lot of the initiative and eagerly looked to pull further ahead in the contest.
Los Blancos did get their rewards towards the final 15 minutes through Rodyrgo, who drove past a few challengers to go level with Julen Agirrezabala before finding the back of the net.
Defender Eder Militao got a run out in the dying stages having recovered from a lengthy injury recently and replaced Dani Caravjal, as the host secured a comprehensive victory to continue sitting pretty at the top of the table.
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