Karim Benzema and Toni Kroos on target as Real Madrid beat Celta Vigo 3-1 at Municipal de Balaidos on Saturday evening encounter.

Gareth Bale marked his return to the starting line-up with an impressive assist as Los Blancos survived a red card for Luka Modric in their opening La Liga fixture of the season.The Wales star had been left out in the cold for large parts of pre-season following a collapsed move to China, but he set up Benzema for a 12th-minute opener.

Kroos increase his side lead with a stunning shot in the second stanza of the game after Modric was shown a straight red card for the first time in his 16-year senior career and just the second time he’s been sent off.Real Madrid Zinedine Zidane started without any of the summer signings, although the quality substitute Lucas Vazquez rounded off a flowing move 10 minutes from time by drilling a good finish into the bottom-left corner after Benzema’s header struck the post.Celta at least got a consolation through Iker Losada’s precise strike from a similar spot at the other end.Real Madrid welcome Real Valladolid to the Santiago Bernabeu next Saturday, while Celta host Valencia on the same day.