Real Madrid player grabs opportunity by the neck and sets Bernabeu on fire

Marco Asensio scored a hat-trick in his first start of the season

Carlo Ancelotti promised that Marco Asensio, among others, will have an opportunity to play enough minutes for Real Madrid this season. The manager was true to his word, and gave Ansensio his first start against his former club, Real Mallorca at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday.

After reportedly being "unhappy" about his lack of game time in previous matches, Asensio made his case by scoring a hat-trick in Real Madrid's emphatic 6-1 victory against Mallorca.

Frenchman Karim Benzema extended his goal tally by contributing a brace, with Isco Alarcon scoring a late goal from off the bench. Real Madrid have now scored a total of 21 goals in only six matches so far. They have only dropped two points in La Liga, and are sitting at the top of the table with 16 points.

Back to Asensio, the Spaniard had a shaky time at the Bernabeu since returning from a lengthy injury that kept him out of action throughout the 2019/20 season. He started the current season in the sidelines as well, but Ancelotti made good on his promise to rotate his players and give opportunities to those who are training well.

Against Mallorca, the Italian made the bold move of naming a starting lineup that did not have the tried and tested midfield trio of Toni Kroos, Casemiro and Luka Modric. Instead, he called up Asensio, new signing Eduardo Camavinga and Fede Vaalverde. It was a clear look at what the future will look like at Real Madrid in the coming years.

According to Marca, it had been a total of 1,015 days since Casemiro, Kroos and Modric all missed a game at the same time.

Camavinga had been stellar since his debut for the club, scoring from the bench within 6 minutes. Valverde has proven to be dependable since last season, and now Asensio has shown that he can comfortable take on a starting role as well.

In attack, Benzema and Vinicius Jr. continue to shine, with Luka Jovic also receiving some much needed minutes. He had several opportunities to score, but luck will have to find him another day. For now, Marco Asensio is the man of the hour, and Ancelotti will be delighted with the quality of the squad that he has at his disposal.