Real Madrid extend lead in La Liga as Karim Benzema’s goal sees off stubborn Athletic Bilbao

Having recorded a 2-1 win over Sevilla following a late winner from the in-form Vinicius Junior last week, Real Madrid added Athletic Bilbao to their list of victims on Wednesday.

Real Madrid are literally running away with the La Liga title this season. Los Blancos have been the most consistent side in the Spanish top flight and they don’t look like they can be slowed down anytime soon.

Carlo Ancelotti’s side has played some very difficult matches in recent weeks but they’ve managed to navigate their way through unscathed.

They faced a tough test against Los Leones in a game where chances were few and far between. However, Madrid dug deep to claim all three points in the end.

Benzema’s 40th minute strike turned out to be the winner against Athletic Bilbao. The Frenchman has been the team’s best player in the last three years and he continues to deliver at crucial moments.

Without his goal, Real Madrid would definitely have dropped points on Wednesday evening, especially as Bilbao showed great resilience and kept probing till the end.

The visitors ultimately failed to grab the equalizer, but it wasn’t for a lack of effort. They created several chances but were let down by poor finishing, with Inaki Williams being the biggest culprit.

Real Madrid, though, did the most important thing by scoring when it mattered and they had Benzema to thank for being in the right place at the right time to prod the ball home.

Real Madrid are now 13 points ahead of Barcelona in La Liga

Real Madrid are looking extremely impressive this season, winning each of their last seven matches in all competitions.

The interesting thing is that, like all title-winning teams, they do not need to play well to win.

“The fact that we’ve won seven games in a row doesn't come down to luck,” Ancelotti said after the win over Bilbao, as quoted by Realmadrid.com.

“When we can't use our quality in one area we can use another quality. I’m really pleased. I liked the end better than the first half because it looked like an exhibition game, where we didn't want to create chances. In the final stretch we lacked a bit of quality, but not the desire.”

Real Madrid appear to be winning machines and, having opened a 13-point lead over rivals Barcelona, the title is now certainly theirs to lose.