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Real Madrid survived a scare from Segunda B side Fuenlabrada to earn a 2-2 draw at the Santiago Bernabeu, finishing the night 4-2 on aggregate and advancing to the pre-quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey.
Luis Milla stunned the home side with a howitzer in the 25th minute, before substitute Gareth Bale turned things around in the second half, setting up Borja Mayoral in the 63rd and 70th minute. Alvaro Portilla grabbed a deserved draw for the minnows with a well-taken goal in the 89th minute.
Here are the major talking points from the game:
#1 Alcorconazo 2.0 - The Bernabeu was right to whistle
The Madrid home crowd have been in the news this season - what with their treatment of Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo. The jeers have been plentiful and as a result the Bernabeu faithful have copped plenty of criticism from the rest of the football world.
If there ever was a night for jeers, however, this was it. Even if the starting XI Zinedine Zidane had put out was chock full of reserve players and Castilla products, there was enough quality to comfortably see off a Segunda B side.
What was more egregious about the performance was that Madrid were second best in the competitive stakes - forgive me if I'm channelling my inner British pundit here - but where was the passion? Fuenlabrada clearly wanted it more, and if Lady Luck smiled their way, Real Madrid could very well have suffered another Alcorconazo and been dumped out of the Copa del Rey.
#2 The time is right for Bale to resurrect his Madrid career
With his first touch in 63 days for Real Madrid, Gareth Bale reminded everyone precisely why Florentino Perez parted with €100 million for his services. An outrageous cross with the outside of his left foot found Borja Mayoral's head and some dignity was restored to Real Madrid's performance.
Bale's quality shone through tonight - he was instrumental in the second goal too, and this could prove to be the catalyst for his Real Madrid career. The stage is perfectly set - Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo are misfiring, and the Bernabeu is crying out for someone to grab this middling season by the throat.
If Gareth Bale manages to stay fit, we could very well witness the rebirth of his stop-start Madrid career.
If.
#3 Luis Milla with a nice touch of history
As Keylor Navas' palms fumbled the ball into the net for Fuenlabrada's opening goal, the loudest cheer on the planet probably came from somewhere in Indonesia. Luis Milla, father to...Luis Milla is currently coach of Indonesia, but he knows plenty about playing at the Bernabeu.
Senior, curiously enough, played for both Barcelona and Real Madrid, although he played longer for Los Blancos, turning out in 165 games for them in the 90s. He scored thrice, but no goal scored by a Milla would have pleased him more than the one we witnessed tonight.
Junior's swerving shot was enough to bamboozle one of the best keepers in the world and he will surely cherish the moment when Fuenlabrada, wee little Fuenlabrada, were leading Real Madrid. At the Santiago Bernabeu.
Football's a game of inches though, and had Cata Diaz' header that crashed off the bar been an inch lower, Fuenlabrada would have been leading 2-0 and Milla might very well have been celebrating defeating his father's team.
#4 Madrid's reserve side the difference this season
Cristiano Ronaldo pretty much hit the nail on the head with his assessment of Real Madrid's troubles, saying "The players who have arrived have a lot of potential but Pepe, Morata and James made us stronger and the players are younger now."
While the Castilla products making their debut could be forgiven for a nervous, disjointed performance, the likes of Nacho, Marcos Llorente, Dani Ceballos, Borja Mayoral and Mateo Kovacic ought to really have a look in the mirror.
Llorente and Ceballos arrived in Madrid with much fanfare as the next generation of Spanish superstars but did little to justify the hype tonight. It perhaps explains why Zinedine Zidane has been so reluctant to rotate his midfield this season - the pair are a far cry from the likes of James Rodriguez et al.
Zidane's rotation was why Madrid won the double last season, and the reverse may be why they may end up trophyless this year.
#5 January cannot come soon enough for Madrid
Perhaps the most annoying part of the night for an armchair Madridista fan was the fact that Borja Mayoral scored the brace that salvaged a draw for Real Madrid. The centre-forward was gifted both of his goals by Gareth Bale and honestly, offered nothing throughout the night - against a Segunda B side.
He is clearly not good enough, and if Real Madrid do not dip into the transfer market this January, Zinedine Zidane's job could very well be under threat come the end of the season. The squad is clearly in need of quality backup and while Zidane might favour blooding the youngsters, tonight was enough evidence for him that it might cost him his job.
