Ruud strike sinks Bilbao
Sunday, December 09, 2007

Ruud van Nistelrooy lifted Real Madrid to a 1-0 win over Athletic Bilbao on Saturday as the La Liga leaders extended the gap at the top to seven points.

Real Madrid has 35 points from 15 matches, a comfortable cushion on Barcelona and Villarreal. Barca and Villarreal have 28 points but still play Sunday.

Real Madrid's victory was sparked by goalie Iker Casillas, who made a save on a one-on-one chance against Bilbao's Fernando Llorente in the 8th minute.

Llorente was in on the right side of the box, but Casillas did well to cut off the angles and stopped the shot.

Real Madrid had one of its best opportunities of the first half minutes later when Raul lost a defender in the box to test Bilbao goalie Daniel Aranzubia.

Robinho followed with another chance for Real Madrid less than a minute later, but Aranzubia made a save at the near post.

Real Madrid looked to take the lead in the 37th when Sergio Ramos headed into the right corner, but the goal was waved off for offsides.

Van Nistelrooy finally gave Real Madrid the goal it needed in the 55th with a long, swerving shot into the back, right corner of the net.

After a defensive mistake by Bilbao, Van Nistelrooy set up the goal by taking a few touches to the right and unleashing the shot from well outside the box.

Although Real controlled the majority of the possession, both sides had plenty of chances throughout the match.

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