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Match - Wed 2 May, 21:00, San Mames
| Goals | Goals |
|---|---|
| 20. Gonzalo Higuain (16’) | |
| 23. Mesut Ozil (20’) | |
| 7. Cristiano Ronaldo (50’) |
Madrid beat Bilbao to secure title
Christiano Ronaldo, RealMadrid
Gonzalo Higuain, Mesut Ozil and Cristiano Ronaldo found the back of the net for the visitors while Bilbao failed to reply, although they did create some good chances.
Jose Mourinho’s men came into the game knowing that they need to win to clinch the title and their intentions were clear from the first whistle.
However, their first real chance to grab the lead came in the 11th minute when they were awarded a penalty.
Bilbao defender Javi Martinez was adjudged to have used his hands to block a header from Sergio Ramos and the referee didn’t hesitate to point to the spot before the offender was shown a yellow card.
As expected, Ronaldo stepped up to take the penalty kick only for his shot to be blocked by goalkeeperGorka Iraizoz.
Nevertheless, the deadlock was broken five minutes later when Higuain received a pass from Ozil on the edge of the box and turned away from his marker before firing an unstoppable shot into the back of the net.
The Bilbao goalkeeper was left helpless again in the 20th minute when Ronaldo delivered a first time low cross from the right to find Ozil at the far post, who was left with an easy task of sidefooting the ball home.
The hosts’ best chance of the match came in the 36th minute when Inigo Perez’ thunderous freekick produced a great save from Iker Casillas.
San Jose managed to get to the rebound but his equally powerful strike deflected off Higuain and then crashed against the crossbar.
Ozil came close to grabbing his brace two minutes later with a sublime strike from outside the penalty area, but his shot also picked up a slight deflection before brushing the top of the crossbar.
Then five minutes after the break Ronaldo made up for his penalty miss when he connected with an inswinging corner from Alonso to beat Iraizoz with a strong header from close range.
The Portuguese had a few more attempts at goal in the closing minutes of the game but each time he found the Bilbao goalkeeper positioned well to prevent him from scoring his 45th goal of the season.
Marcelo Bielsa’s men finished the match with ten men as Javi Martinez was sent off for an early shower in the 85th minute as he received his second booking for handling the ball.
Real Madrid increased their points tally to 94, seven ahead of Barcelona, while Athletic Bilbao remain in 8th place with 48 points.
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