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Karanka fancies Real grit

SoccerNews in La Liga 20 Nov 2011

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Winning when you are not playing well is not easy, but Real Madrid did it on Saturday to assistant manager Aitor Karanka’s joy.

Real remained three points clear of Barcelona at the top of La Liga after their 3-2 win at the Mestalla in Valencia on Saturday.

Goals to Karim Benzema and Sergio Ramos had the eventual winners cruising, before a late scare sparked by a Roberto Soldado double saw a nervy finish.

“This victory strengthens the unity on the squad even more by proving it can win both playing a brilliant game or suffering,” Karanka said.

“The game looked finished after we scored our second strike. They then scored quickly and we followed that with a third goal of our own, seemingly leaving the game finished again.”

“Mestalla is a difficult venue and we know these three points are very important. The season is far from over and we will continue to work to take more points.”

Valencia manager Unai Emery felt his side deserved a point from the encounter and bemoaned the fact they could not score a late equaliser.

“The defeat leaves us very sad,” Emery told AS after the match.

“We could have drawn via a penalty near the end, and a point would have done us justice.”

“We struggled in the first half, and although Real Madrid did not have many chances, they remained in control. In the second half, we had released ourselves and found options to tie the match. The reaction has been positive, but in the end we lost.”

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