The fourth official indicates that three minutes will be added for stoppages.
90' +1
M. Díaz enters the game and replaces K. Benzema.
The missed shot is Benzema's last involvement of the day - as Mariano is on in his place.
87'
Casemiro gets yellow.
Casemiro dives into a challenge on Mina in midfield and is shown a yellow card for the infringement.
85'
F. Valverde enters the game and replaces T. Kroos.
Vinícius Júnior enters the game and replaces Dani Carvajal.
M. Ødegaard enters the game and replaces L. Modrić.
Vinicius takes Carvajal's place with five minutes remaining.
Modric is replaced by Odegaard as Zidane makes a number of changes.
Valverde is on for Modric as Real Madrid look to see out the result.
84'
Dani Carvajal gets yellow.
Carvajal is booked on his way off the pitch, which means he will miss Real Madrid’s next match.
81'
Mallo looks to clip a cross into the penalty area for Mina from the right after Olaza’s delivery from the left was met with a block - but Varane rises highest to nod away the danger.
76'
Mendez looks to spring Mina through on-goal with a disguised pass, but Varane is there to shield the ball immediately, prompting Courtois to race off his line and pick it up.
74'
E. Hazard enters the game and replaces Marco Asensio.
Real Madrid make their first change of the match, which sees Asensio replaced by Hazard.
71'
Suarez takes a corner-kick but it fails to beat the first man as Benzema stoops low to clear the delivery out of the penalty area.
Minute
Description
69'
Celta Vigo will need to do something soon if they wish to set up a grandstand finish. The visitors have seen much more of the ball in the second half, but they’ve not yet been able to force Courtois into a save.
67'
Celta have a free-kick deep in their own half after Real Madrid's overzealous press gets them in trouble with the referee. It should be no worry for the hosts though - as time continues to tick.
64'
Miguel Baeza enters the game and replaces Nolito.
Celta make their second change of the match, replacing Nolito with Baeza.
62'
Suarez looks to split Nacho and Mendy with an incisive pass to play Mendez into the penalty area, but it’s hit with too much power as Courtois casually collects for a goal-kick.
58'
Zidane’s side are looking very professional as they close down space when out of possession, and keep it coolly when they do. The three points will send Real Madrid top by a point should they see out the match, though rivals Atletico have three matches in-hand.
55'
Down by two goals and without their leading scorer, Celta Vigo have quite the mountain to climb in the last 30 minutes. Of the 22 goals scored by the visitors this season, Aspas has had a hand in 15 of them; nine goals and six assists.
53'
Marco Asensio has scored a goal for Real Madrid! Assist by Lucas Vázquez.
The combination of Vazquez and Asensio pays dividends once again - though this time the roles are reversed as Vazquez is credited with the assist.
REAL MADRID DOUBLE THEIR ADVANTAGE! A goal is the least Asensio deserves after his wonderful display this match! A weak Murillo pass is intercepted in midfield by Casemiro, who immediately plays it forward for Vazquez. The winger gets into the penalty area and squares a pass for Asensio, who latches onto it and sends a rocket into the top corner! 2-0!
51'
Fran Beltrán enters the game and replaces Iago Aspas.
A substitution is made before the free-kick, as Aspas is somewhat surprisingly taken off. Beltran is his replacement, but it’s uncertain whether the change was sparked by injury or by design.
50'
Nacho gets yellow.
Aspas gets onto the loose ball on the right flank and looks to break forward, but Nacho sticks a leg out and trips the striker up, giving away a free-kick. The centre-back is also booked for the infringement.
48'
Casemiro's intercepted cross in midfield sparks a Celta counter-attack, but the visitors are forced to slow the play down and hold onto possession after Mina is unable to work space to shoot from the edge of the 18-yard box.
46'
Celta Vigo get the match restarted from the kick-off!
45'
HALF-TIME: REAL MADRID 1-0 CELTA VIGO.
42'
R. Tapia gets yellow.
Modric is brought down in midfield by Tapia, whose trailing leg brought down the Madrid number 10. It’s a yellow card for the Celta Vigo player - who will miss next match through suspension.
40'
The free-kick comes into the penalty area from the left, but Celta are unable to get near it as it’s knocked down by a defender before Modric whacks it away.
38'
Marco Asensio gets yellow.
Asensio lets his frustration get the better of him, taking Aspas’ legs out from under him. It’s the first yellow card of the match for a Real Madrid player.
36'
Murillo gets into Madrid’s half and looks to play a clever chip into the penalty area for Aspas to latch onto, but the striker is far too eager in pursuit of the ball - bowling Nacho over from behind and giving away a free-kick.
34'
Celta Vigo have found it very difficult to get back into the game after conceding the early goal. Madrid are patient in the knowledge that their opponents will be forced to come forward the longer it remains 1-0, opening up space at the back. Zidane’s side look confident, even if they’ve seen less of the ball in recent minutes.
31'
Suarez finds Olaza in space down the left flank, but the full-back’s delivery is extremely poor as Nacho is able to cut it off before reaching Aspas.
28'
Celta appeal to the referee for a penalty after Murillo’s volley following a corner seemed to catch the elbow of Mendy, but it seems completely innocuous and the match official waves claims away immediately.
24'
Benzema is brought down in midfield after Murillo goes low on the striker, taking his legs out from under him. It’s the fifth free-kick given away by Celta in just over 20 minutes.
22'
As Real Madrid attack again, it seems as though the forward trio are being told to squeeze more and more in-field, allowing the full-backs to push higher up the pitch to provide the width. Asensio is now attacking the space in-between Mallo and Araujo - which will make it harder for the former to get up the pitch, as he is wont to do.
20'
Asensio is once again at the heart of Madrid’s attacks as he delivers a low cross into the penalty area for Benzema, but Mallo is there to intercept.
18'
Real Madrid players queue up and wait for their chance to strike as Vazquez brings the ball towards the 18-yard box, but it’s Modric who receives the square pass. He takes a moment to set himself, but the eventual effort is blocked at the last moment by Araujo.
16'
Benzema reaches the edge of the penalty area and lays the ball off for Mendy, but it’s an incredibly poor cross from the left-back, which balloons high and winds up going out for a Celta throw-in on the other side.
14'
More frustration for Celta as Tapia goes to ground and catches Asensio, bringing him down well inside his own half and giving away a free-kick.
12'
Looking for Vazquez again, Asensio clips a cross to the far post - but this time it’s put a bit too far as Blanco is allowed to collect for a goal-kick.
10'
Brais Méndez gets yellow.
Mendez is called for a foul on Asensio inside Celta’s half. There’s no doubt that the goal conditioned the winger’s reaction, who decided immediately to pull down the Madrid forward instead of allowing him passage again. It’s a booking for the Celta Vigo player.
8'
Celta were so close to opening the scoring themselves after a lovely ball played over the top for Aspas - but his inability to put more power on the shot really cost his side - as the visitors had camped inside Madrid’s half.
6'
Lucas Vázquez has scored a goal for Real Madrid! Assist by Marco Asensio.
REAL MADRID MAKE IT 1-0 EARLY! Real Madrid hit on the counter-attack after Aspas’ failed chip over Courtois at one end leads to a goal at the other. Asensio was able to make his way unimpeded down the wing before crossing to the far post for Vazquez, who nodded the chance in easily!
One winger serves the other as Asensio's cross for Vazquez is the assist!
3'
Real Madrid have been able to hold onto possession in the opening minutes, but an organised Celta midfield has offered little in the way of space, as Modric is forced to turn back and pass to Varane yet again.
1'
Real Madrid get the match underway from the kick-off!
Hello and welcome to our LIVE commentary of the LaLiga fixture between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo!
Real Madrid’s draw with Elche three days ago arrested a run of five consecutive LaLiga victories; a far cry from their November form which saw them winless in the month. Los Blancos now sit second in the table, two points back of cross-town rivals Atletico Madrid having played two matches more.
After gaining only three out of a possible 28 points from the end of September until mid-November, Celta Vigo have completely turned their form around and won five of their subsequent six matches in LaLiga. As is so often the case, Iago Aspas has been crucial to Celta’s success, scoring in four of his last five matches. The eighth-placed side can go as high as sixth with a win today, though it’d be their first victory over Madrid in the league since a 2-0 in 2014.
REAL MADRID SUBS: Marcelo, Isco, Martin Odegaard, Federico Valverde, Eder Militao, Mariano, Luka Jovic, Eden Hazard, Andriy Lunin, Vinicius Junior, Diego Altube, Alvaro Odriozola.
REAL MADRID XI (4-3-3): Thibaut Courtois; Ferland Mendy, Nacho Fernandez, Raphael Varane, Dani Carvajal; Luka Modric, Casemiro, Toni Kroos; Marco Asensio, Karim Benzema, Lucas Vazquez.
With 15 minutes to go before kick-off, let’s look at how the two sides are lining up, starting with our hosts!
CELTA VIGO SUBS: Lautaro De Leon, Joseph Aidoo, Sergio Carreira, Miguel Rodriguez, Ivan Villar, Miguel Baeza, Okay Yokuslu, Fran Beltran, Jose Manuel Fontan, Gabriel Veiga.
CELTA VIGO XI (4-4-2): Ruben Blanco; Hugo Mallo, Nestor Araujo, Jeison Murillo, Lucas Olaza; Brais Mendez, Denis Suarez, Renato Tapia, Nolito; Iago Aspas, Santi Mina.
As Celta pour forward in the second half, their full-backs will need to be aware of Madrid’s counter-attacking threat. With Vinicius and Hazard both available from the bench, the visitors will need to do their best to keep the deficit at just one, while trying to find the equaliser. It doesn’t appear, however, that coach Eduardo Coudet will be able to do much from the substitute’s bench, as nine out of his side’s last 10 goals have come from those already on the pitch - with Beltran the only exception. If they are to get anything from the match, Aspas must be brought into play more often.
That concludes our commentary of the LaLiga fixture between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo. We hope you enjoyed it!
Next up for Real Madrid is a trip to play Osasuna on January 9, while Celta Vigo will look to get back to winning ways in a Copa del Rey fixture against Ibiza in midweek, before hosting Villarreal in LaLiga on Friday.
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