Ronaldo hat-trick leads Real Madrid to comeback win

Cristiano Ronaldo rubbished claims of a personal goalscoring drought, helping himself to a hat-trick as Real Madrid overcame some early Halloween jitters to defeat Deportivo Alaves 4-1 and consolidate their position atop the LaLiga table.Zinedine Zidane recalled BBC to the starting lineup, with the in-form Spanish trident of Alvaro Morata, Marco Asensio and Lucas Vazquez having to settle for a place on the bench
despite their midweek exploits at Cultural Leonesa, as regular starters Keylor Navas and Marcelo also returned to the fray. With Los Blancos coming into the game having scored 20 goals in their last four games, but facing an opponent that hadn't lost at home this season, something had to give at the Estadio Mendizorroza. Things didn't get off to a good start for Zidane's men, as Alaves' Brazilian danger-man Deyverson scored just 6 minutes into the game to make it 1-0.Danilo was dispossessed too easily near the halfway line, leaving the Basque side free to attack the gaping hole in Real's right-back area and on-loan Atletico Madrid left-back Theo Fernandez put in a driven cross that Raphael Varane failed to cope with, leaving Deyverson left to gratefully slot the ball home.The Alaves striker then found himself in the thick of the action at the other end of the pitch, giving away a penalty kick after the referee ruled that he used his elbow to block a Bale free-kick.Replays suggested that it might have hit his head, but it was a moot point as Cristiano Ronaldo stepped up to level things at 1-1.Los Blancos struggled to get into a good attacking rhythm, even as Alaves continued to threaten on their counter-attacking raids. Real took the lead against the run of play however, as Ronaldo drove into the area before unleashing a powerful shot that took a deflection on its way into Fernando Pacheco's net, the capital club enjoying a flattering 2-1 lead at halftime. Alaves charged out of the blocks in the second half, with Navas having to rush out of his box to deny Victor Camarasa after the defensive midfielder deceived Real's centre backs to infiltrate the penalty area. The Costa Rican custodian was kept busy, forced into a smart save in the 55th minute as Deyverson threatened to match Ronaldo's goal tally on the day.Los Blancos were then awarded another penalty kick in the 77th minute after Ronaldo was hauled to the ground by substitute Nenad Krsticic.The Portuguese man attempted a carbon copy of his first half effort but Pacheco was wise to it, making the save and giving the Alaves fans reason to roar. Their joy was short-lived however, with super-sub Alvaro Morata running onto a wonderful long ball from Marcelo before lobbing the ball over Pacheco to make it 3-1 and secure the three points. Los Blancos' lead was then widened further after the impressive Mateo Kovacic carried the ball upfield before laying off to Ronaldo, who played a give-and-go with Marcelo before firing in a low shot to secure his hat-trick. The 4-1 scoreline may not have been a fair reflection of the balance of the game, but Real won't be complaining as they now turn their attentions to another away fixture, at Legia Warsaw in the Champions League Wednesday.