Real Madrid secured a stunning victory at the Alfredo Di Stéfano against Mérida on Primera Federación matchday 15. Our reserve team were clearly superior to their opponents in a match that they controlled from the start and the result of which could have been even greater. Gonzalo was the star of the show with four goals, two of them in the final stretch of the first half, which put the game on track against a Mérida team that played with one less from the 12th minute. Gonzalo has now scored 14 league goals and has found the net in his last six games. Pol Fortuny Ribes rounded off the scoring.

The match kicked off with high offensive tempo. Doncel had the first and only chance for Mérida after two minutes but Castilla quickly took control and began to lay siege to the visitors. Loren Zúñiga had a header that went wide and in the 10th minute he was awarded a penalty for a challenge on Eslava. Gonzalo could have opened the scoring from 11 yards but Juanpa saved the spot-kick. Raúl's men persisted. Two minutes later, a steal by Víctor Muñoz in the final third led to Pareja being sent off for a foul on the Castilla player as he was about to face the keeper.

Castilla reap their reward
From then on, Castilla settled in the opposition area and it was only a matter of time before the goal would come. Gonzalo, who was moved to centre-forward due to Loren Zúñiga's injury (replaced by David Ruíz), made it two goals before the break. In the 36th minute, David Jiménez put in a cross from the left and the number 7 beat the defence to cross for the 1-0 lead. The second goal came in stoppage time in the first half. Chema passed to Gonzalo who turned toward goal to beat the visitors' goalkeeper with a powerful shot scoring his tenth league goal of the season.

Gonzalo excels in great team performance
No sooner had the second half started than Castilla put the game to bed. Pol Fortuny connected in the 48th minute with a powerful left-footed shot inside the box that the visiting keeper could not keep out. Six minutes later, Gonzalo scored the third goal with a great individual effort and the fourth of the match after a pass from Pol Fortuny. Raúl made a flurry of changes, but the intensity and ambition in front of goal did not cease. In the 71st minute, Ribes scored the fifth of the night with a cross-shot inside the area. But Gonzalo wanted more. It was his night. Víctor Muñoz, a constant threat throughout the match, broke down the flank and fed Gonzalo with a cross, which he pushed into the net in the 85th minute to put the finishing touch to his performance and that of the whole Castilla team with a 6-0 win.