Rafa Benitez has hailed his side’s performance following the 5-0 win over Real Betis on Saturday saying all the ingredients he is looking for in a successful team were there.
Gareth Bale and James Rodriguez both scored twice while Karim Benzema marked his return from injury with a goal as Los Blancos got their first win of the new La Liga campaign.
At his press conference afterwards, Benitez said there is always room for improvement but he was pleased with what he’d witnessed.
“I’m delighted with the team’s performance. There’s always room for improvement, but I said the team would score and they proved me right,” he commented.
And he added: “The biggest positives from the game could be summed up from the first five minutes: intensity, aggression, attacking ambition, cutting edge…. The negatives were the two lapses of concentration that resulted in a chance for them and a penalty. But the positives far outweigh the negatives.”
When asked about how he wants his team to play this season, Benitez said there need to be a right balance between attack and defence and that the players were almost perfect in that regard against Pepe Mel’s team.
“More than it being what I’m looking for, it’s about the players’ characteristics. I’m looking for balance when we’re defending and more freedom in attack. There were spells when we had 80% of the possession. We have to continue on that track by playing well as a team, creating chances and putting them away,” he stated.
