MADRID (AP) — Second-half penalties by Marco Asensio and Lucas Vazquez were enough to give depleted Real Madrid a 2-0 win at third-division team Fuenlabrada in the Copa del Rey on Thursday. Without most of its usual starters — including
MADRID (AP) — Second-half penalties by Marco Asensio and Lucas Vazquez were enough to give depleted Real Madrid a 2-0 win at third-division team Fuenlabrada in the Copa del Rey on Thursday.
Without most of its usual starters — including Cristiano Ronaldo — Madrid did just enough to earn the first-leg victory in the tournament’s Round of 32.
Asensio scored from the spot in the 63rd minute after Achraf Hakimi was pulled down on the edge of the area, and Vazquez got on the board in the 80th after Theo Hernandez was held inside the box.
“They started well but we knew that they would not be able to keep up with that pace,” Asensio said. “I’m happy for the goal. I always try to take advantage of the minutes that I get on the field.”
Fuenlabrada, a young club based just outside Madrid, complained about both penalty calls at the Fernando Torres Stadium, which is named after the Atletico Madrid striker who was born in the city.
Fuenlabrada player Paco Candela was sent off with a second yellow card for the foul that prompted the second penalty.
Madrid went a man down near the end after Jesus Vallejo, making his debut with the first team, was shown a straight red card for a dangerous foul.
The return leg will be played at Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in November.
“We know it will be difficult to overturn this result,” Fuenlabrada player Luis Milla said. “We will just try to play a good game and enjoy it.”
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WINNING AGAIN
Las Palmas cruised to a 4-1 victory at fellow first-division club Deportivo La Coruna to end a five-game losing streak.
Jeronimo “Momo” Figueroa scored twice early and Jonathan Calleri added two late goals to give the visitors their first win since September.
It was the sixth loss in 10 matches for Deportivo, and it came only two days after coach Pepe Mel was fired.
Reserve team coach Cristobal Parralo was on the bench on Thursday.
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LONG-RANGE STRIKE
Midfielder Sergio Canales scored with a remarkable long-range shot in the first half to give Real Sociedad a 1-0 win over third-division club Lleida in Catalonia.
Canales’s winner came with a booming left-footed strike that hit the top corner from far outside the area.
A few Catalan flags and pro-independence “estelada” flags were seen at the Camp d’Esports stadium in northeastern Spain.
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FIRST-DIVISION MATCHUP
A first-half strike by Emmanuel Okyere Boateng and a second-half header by Cheik Doukoure gave Levante a 2-0 win at Girona in a matchup between top-flight clubs.
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DELAYED DRAW
A power failure forced the game between Espanyol and second-division club Tenerife to be delayed for several minutes, and the teams could not manage more than a scoreless draw when it resumed in the Canary Islands.
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