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[ad_1] BARCELONA: Real Madrid cruised to a 4-1 win over Villarreal on Sunday to move top of La Liga but their night was tarnished when defender David Alaba suffered a serious knee injury. Carlo Ancelotti's side are a point ahead of Catalan minnows Girona , who host Alaves on Monday and will be looking to reclaim pole position. Spain's top scorer Jude Bellingham broke the deadlock for Madrid with his 13th league goal of the season before Rodrygo Goes doubled their lead. Villarreal pulled one back through Jose Luis Morales, but Brahim Diaz scored a superb solo goal to restore Madrid's advantage. Luka Modric drove home the fourth as Madrid fans celebrated a sizeable victory in their final home match of the year. Madrid's joy was tempered by Alaba's injury, confirmed by the club in a statement, saying the defender needs surgery. The Austrian joins a long list of players out, including Thibaut Courtois, Eder Militao and Eduardo Camavinga, all with knee inj...

[ad_1] CNN  —  It is one of the most famous Spanish clubs in the world, if not the most famous. But for the first time in its history, according to sports data companies Opta Sports and Gracenote, Real Madrid fielded no Spanish players in its starting line up for a LaLiga match as Carlo Ancelotti opted for a Belgian, two Brazilians, an Austrian, two Germans, three Frenchmen, a Croat and a Uruguayan against Villarreal on Saturday. Despite the international talent on display, however, Los Blancos succumbed to a 2-1 defeat against Villarreal at the Estadio de la Cerámica, and spurned a chance to go top of LaLiga. It is just the second league defeat of the season for Real Madrid and an important win for the Yellow Submarines which draws them level on points with fourth-place Atlético Madrid in the table. The first ...