Last season, Real Madrid came close to winning the title with twelve wins, six draws, and one loss while Alavés managed to finish the season with six wins, six draws, and seven losses. This season, both teams are hoping to improve on last season’s result, with Real Madrid hoping to be crowned the 2021/2022 champions. But how did they fare in their first match against one another? Keep reading below to find out all about the match, as well as some important information about the Real Madrid team, including player transfers and the financial situation of the club:
Real Madrid overcome Alavés in season opener
Real Madrid kickstarted their 2021-2022 La Liga campaign with an impressive 4-1 victory over Alavés. However, although they controlled the game from the start, in the first half of the game, they struggled to make their dominance count. The Alavés defence was just too hard to beat.
If the first half of the match was boring for fans, due to the lack of action on the pitch, the second half was anything but. In fact, it took less than two minutes for the first goal to be scored. Alavés were unable to clear their lines and an outstanding back-heeled flick from Eden Hazard enabled Karim Benzema to score his first goal of the match.
Just eight minutes later, Real Madrid doubled their lead when Nacho Fernandez managed to turn home a cross from Luka Modric’s. The Croatian’s delivery into the box was extremely precise and was even more impressive considering it was done with his less dominant foot.
62 minutes into the match, Benzema was able to score another goal after Fernando Pacheco managed to keep out his initial shot. However, just two minutes after this goal, Real Madrid found themselves on the backfoot when the Real Madrid goalkeeper brought down John Guidetti in the area for a penalty. Joselu stepped up to take the penalty. He sent the Real Madrid goalkeeper the wrong way, allowing him to score the first goal for Alavés.
Unfortunately, this was as good as the game got for Alavés, as Real Madrid managed to score a fourth goal in injury time. The win was the perfect start to the season for the Real Madrid team, with fellow title rivals Atletico Madrid and Barcelona kickstarting their season on Sunday.
Real Madrid’s Player Transfer Activity This Season
Real Madrid is one of the best football teams in the world, currently having the record for winning most European Cup trophies. They are famous for spending huge amounts of money on transfer fees. In fact, back in 2019, they managed to break the world record when they signed Cristiano Ronaldo.
But what transfers have taken place this season? Since the summer transfer window opened, there have been several players joining and departing from this legendary team. Here are some of the most noteworthy transfers:
- David Alba – David Alba has joined Real Madrid from Bayer Munich. This transfer took place on the 1st of July 2021, but the transfer fee is unknown.
- Sergio Ramos – Sergio Ramos left Real Madrid on the 8th of July 2021. He is heading to Paris St Germain.
- Raphaël Varane – this talented defender joined Manchester United on a four year deal.
- Victor Chust – Real Madrid has agreed to loan Victor Chust to Cadiz this season.
As well as these players, rumours suggest that Real Madrid are ready to offer over AUD 120 million for Kylian Mbappe. This would be a great signing for the team.
Real Madrid’s Current Financial Situation
Recently, Real Madrid released their financial figures for last season. The good news for the team is that this year they have managed to make a net profit of over AUD 874,000. This is the second season running that this team has managed to make a profit.
While some fans dislike club president Florentino Perez for some of his decisions during his tenure, he has still displayed high business acumen to steer the club through current challenging times. Perez has managed, despite losses from the pandemic of over AUD 300 million, to save the club from bankruptcy. He has done this by attracting several new investors to the club. In fact, Real Madrid now has a number of sponsorship deals with a range of different brands including online broker easyMarkets.
While Real Madrid is not out of debt yet, there is hope for the future as normality begins to return and fans start heading back to stadiums.
The match between Real Madrid and Alavés was a match not to be missed by fans. There were lots of exciting moments that kept us all on our toes. Both teams will be looking to kick on from this opening day result and achieve their goals of improving on last season.