Marco Asensio scored three goals for the first time in his career. It was a perfect game for the Spanish midfielder.
Carlo gave Marco a chance to Marco from the start!
Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid have started the season like a well-oiled machine, taking 16 points out of a possible 18 and scoring 21 goals in six matches, yet in their most recent victory over Real Mallorca, it was Marco Asensio who put forward his case to be a more regular starter. A hat-trick against his old club was the highlight of a fun night at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, nights that have been few and far between in recent years, and not just due to the building works and COVID-19 shutting the ground.
A lack of attacking flair at Real Madrid had forced Florentino Perez to breaking point, whereby he made an offer of 200 million euros for Kylian Mbappe, yet Ancelotti has steadily improved a lot of those problems thus far. As well as Asensio’s magic, the 6-1 victory over Real Mallorca also showed fans a glimpse of what the team’s midfield is going to look like in the future, with none of Casemiro, Toni Kroos and Luka Modric playing a part.
Marco’s anger beforehand
The previous match was marked b Asensio’s anger at a lack of minutes, yet he made his case perfectly well on Wednesday when his coach generously offered him more minutes. Asensio was flawless from central midfield, scoring two goals in the first half and adding a third in the second, and he didn’t let his performance level drop, ironically becoming the first Spaniard to score a Real Madrid hat-trick since 2009. It was the first time in 1,015 days that Casemiro, Kroos and Modric all missed a game together. Real Madrid’s midfield was put in the hands of Fede Valverde, Eduardo Camavinga and Asensio, all three of which proved the task was comfortable for them.