Benzema, Griezmann fit to play in Madrid derby

Zidane first faced Atletico when their rivals were the undisputed Team of Madrid, though now Real Madrid have arguably wrestled back that mantle under the guidance of the 44-year-old Frenchman.

“He is with us, he is better and I am happy that he is in the squad and can play from the start”, said Zidane.

“All the games were different”, he said.

Despite scoring just twice from open play in his last 13 games against Atletico, Ronaldo has remained ideal from the penalty spot.

Paco Alcacer’s Barca misfortune continued when he had a goal ruled out for offside in the second minute and it was to be the start of another wretched day for the former Valencia forward.

He nearly gave Real an early lead when he leapt to direct a header at goal but saw the ball clawed off the line by Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak.

Undeterred, and with Madrid dominating possession and mounting solid defence, Ronaldo soon found the net in the 23rd minute when his long range free-kick was deflected into the net by Atletico’s wall.

Atletico Madrid fans cheer on their team during the La Liga match between against Granada at Vicente Calderon Stadium on October 15, 2016 in Madrid, Spain. A 9-point lag behind their city rivals will leave them with a considerable amount of work to be done in the further games.

Zinedine Zidane feels Cristiano Ronaldo is certain to win the Ballon d’Or again after his hat-trick sealed a Madrid derby win.

In total of 213 matches between the sides, Real Madrid have been the more successful side with 108 victories.

The Portuguese’s opener took a wicked deflection on its way past the excellent Jan Oblak.

The best guess would be Isco and Mateo Kovacic joining Luka Modric in midfield, a trio that we’ve only really seen in games against weak opposition.

Fran Rico’s ninth-minute strike – his second of the season – was enough to give Eibar the three points.

Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane insisted he has no doubt Cristiano Ronaldo will be the deserving victor of a fourth Ballon d’Or come January, but his hat-trick in a 3-0 defeat of Atletico Madrid yesterday may convince others. They have a very good coach (Diego Simeone) who has changed a lot since he arrived and is doing great.

Then Griezmann suddenly came to life; striding on to a Koke pass to pull his shot across goal from a tight angle and then firing at Keylor Navas after more Real uncertainty.

Messi was ruled out just hours before kickoff because he was ill and had vomited, the club said.

Dermot Corrigan is a Madrid-based football writer who covers La Liga and the Spain national team for ESPN FC.