Real Madrid 5-1 Levante. Ronaldo gets in, game gets easier!

It was a calm afternoon at the Santiago Bernabéu, as Real Madrid cruised past Levanteby 5-1. Cristiano Ronaldo started on the bench, but would step in just after the break, still in time to have an impact on the game and collect one assist and his 29th goal in this "La Liga" campaign. Higuaín, Kaká and Ozil with a brace, scored the remaining goals for the Merengues

José Mourinho rested a few key players ahead of today's La Liga game againstLevante, sitting Cristiano Ronaldo and Mesut Ozil on the bench during the first half. The Merengues started the match trailing by one, but the "remontada" was fueled by a terrific Higuaín screamer still during the first half and was followed by a goal from Kaká just a few minutes later. The second half got energized mostly byCristiano Ronaldo and Mesut Ozil comings and Real Madrid ended up running over Levante, scoring another 3 goals and sealing the deal with a final 5-1 result. It's now time to switch all attentions to Turkey, as Galatasaray will host Real Madrid for the Champions League quarter-finals second leg, with a 3-0 on aggregate favorable to the Spanish side.

Cristiano Ronaldo photos in Real Madrid vs Levante
Real Madrid 5-1 Levante goals and highlights:

Levante forced Real Madrid to taste a bit of their own poision, as they got the leading goal in the game from a fast paced counter-attack play. Most of the credit should be given to Pedro Ríos and Michel though, as those were the two Levanteplayers who caught the Merengues' defense off guard and silenced the Bernabéu with an expected goal. Michel's final shot still benefited from a slight deflection on Sergio Ramos, which somehow nullified any chance for Diego López to react to it and putReal Madrid trailing by one, with roughly 30 minutes played in the first half.

The fans were perfectly aware that La Liga's title hopes are more of a mirage than a palpable dream these days, but still, losing against Levante at home would be something they weren't certainly counting with. Fortunately, the Merengues reacted quickly on the pitch and a perfect Xabi Alonso cross, allowed for Gonzalo Higuaínto score what has probably been his best goal this season. The Argentinian forward showed his capability to deliver 1-touch finishes, with a superb volley in the air that left Levante's goalkeeper without any chance to reach the ball. Back to square one in the Bernabéu!

Just three minutes later in the game, Levante's right-back defender Christian Lellhanded the ball inside his side's penalty area and the referee immediately pointed to the spot. Without Cristiano Ronaldo on the pitch, it would be Kaká assuming the responsibility and converting the penalty to put the Merengues on the lead, for the first time on the afternoon. Nothing more would change until the referee whistled for half-time, but Ronaldo had already been warming up during the first 45 minutes, so everyone was expecting for him to come in after the break.

As both teams returned from the locker rooms, it was clear José Mourinho had decided to shake his side up, since he didn't wait any longer to send Cristiano Ronaldo in to the pitch. Callejón went out to give room for the Portuguese star and the Merengues immediatly improved their performance level, as they started looking a lot more dangerous and fast in their attacking plays.

The third goal would only arrive inside the last 10 minutes of the game though, but the goalscorer's name was no surprise to anyone. Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 29th goal in La Liga this campaign, his 46th of the season and once again ended up being decisive in helping Real Madrid securing the 3 points in a league game. The assist came from a Gonzalo Higuaín's cross and Ronaldo had all the time in the World to control the ball and fire it past Munúa, putting his side two goals up.

Real Madrid would still score a couple more goals in the late minutes of the game, both by Mesut Ozil. Similarly to Cristiano Ronaldo, Mesut Ozil had also come in into the game after the break and took advantage of a few tired legs in the opponent's side to show off all his class. The German's first goal was actually an empty net tap-in, thanks to an assist from Ronaldo. The second was an also an easy one, but this time it was Angel Di María assisting him, which sealed the deal for good and completed Real Madrid 5-1 win at the Santiago Bernabéu.

Lastly, for those of our readers who know how to read Portuguese, we would like to recommend a short stop at lateral-esquerdo.blogspot.pt, a Portuguese football blog with deep and detailed analysis on clubs and players.

Real Madrid line-up vs Levante:

Goalkeeper: Diego López
Defenders: Marcelo, Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Arbeloa
Midfielders: Xabi Alonso, Modric, Kaká
Attackers: Callejón, Higuaín and Karim Benzema

Real Madrid	vs	Levante
5	Goals	1
36	Shots	8
12	Shots on goal	4
6	Corner kicks	5
8	Fouls commited	8
1	Yellow cards	0
0	Red cards	0
73%	Ball possession	27%

Cristiano Ronaldo next game for Real Madrid will be against Galatasaray, on April 9, 2013, for the Champions League quarter-finals 2nd leg. You can watch Galatasaray vs Real Madrid, Barcelona vs PSG, Manchester United vs Manchester City andTottenham vs Everton, all matches provided from our football live stream section.

Real Madrid next game:
Galatasaray vs Real Madrid kick-off time (09-04-2013):

Jakarta (Indonesia) | GMT+7: 02:45
Spain (Madrid) | GMT+1: 20:45
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | GMT+0: 19:45
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | GMT-3: 16:45
New York (United States) | GMT-4: 15:45
Los Angeles (United States) | GMT-7: 12:45
Beijing (China) | GMT+8: 03:45

Sources: ronaldo7.net / yahoo.com / goal.com.co.uk / sfgate.com / realmadrid.com