By 90min Staff
Real Madrid strolled to a routine 4-0 win over Granada on Saturday evening in a game which meant almost nothing to either side.
Having already sealed the La Liga title, Carlo Ancelotti rested most of his big names to keep them fresh for the Champions League final, while Granada's relegation to the second tier had been confirmed earlier in the day, creating the ultimate dead rubber.
However, with Ancelotti handing opportunities to a number of fringe players, it quickly became clear that Madrid's eager-to-impress youngsters were taking things incredibly seriously.
Left-back Fran Garcia opened the scoring shortly before the half-time break, arriving late to collect a pass from Brahim Diaz and crash home his first La Liga goal for Madrid.
Arda Guler doubled Madrid's advantage in added time after Garcia took his turn as the creator. The left-back's simple cross was controlled and stroked home by Guler to steer Madrid closer to a victory that few felt would elude them.
Madrid maintained their momentum after the restart and had a third goal just four minutes into the second half with a moment of real magic from Brahim, who picked the ball up on the halfway line and drove directly at the box before curling a strike into the bottom corner from the edge of the penalty area.
Myrto Uzuni missed a great chance to pull one back after some good work from the dangerous Facundo Pellistri, but Granada were quickly picking themselves up again after Brahim added a fourth just before the hour mark.
Joselu and Brahim both missed chances for the fifth goal, which almost fell to Granada as Ricard Sanchez's effort needed clearing off the line.
Granada never gave up but the gulf in quality was simply too great for the hosts, whose focus is already on life in the second tier.
Real Madrid player ratings (4-3-3)
GK: Thibaut Courtois (8); RB: Lucas Vazquez (7); CB: Eder Militao (6); CB: Antonio Rudiger (6); LB: Fran Garcia (8); DM: Eduardo Camavinga (8); CM: Luka Modric (8); CM: Dani Ceballos (7); RW: Arda Guler (8); ST: Joselu (6); LW: Brahim Diaz (9).
Substitutes: Nacho Fernandez (6); Toni Kroos (6).
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This article was originally published on 90min.com as Granada 0-4 Real Madrid: Player ratings as Brahim & Guler shine in routine win.
