Karim Benzema overcame the disappointment of being left out of France's Euro 2016 squad with a goal and two assists as Real Madrid moved to within a point of La Liga leaders Barcelona with a 5-1 thrashing of Getafe on Saturday. Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane urged Benzema to "rally quickly" after the French Football Federation announced on Wednesday he will not be selected for the tournament on home soil due to his involvement in a sex-tape scandal, where international teammate Mathieu Valbuena was the subject of a blackmail plot.
Benzema followed his coach's orders as he swept home the opener, before his through ball was prodded home by Isco to give Madrid a commanding 2-0 lead at half-time. Gareth Bale added a third with a typically assured left-footed finish from another super Benzema pass five minutes after the break. Pablo Sarabia grabbed a stunning consolation for Getafe before James Rodriguez and Cristiano Ronaldo rounded off the scoring late on.
Real leapfrog Atletico Madrid into second place with their seventh consecutive La Liga win. However, Atletico and Barca can reassert themselves in the title race when they host Granada and Valencia respectively on Sunday. "It did affect him and yes he is disappointed, but he is a professional and he knows that on the field he is very important for the team," Zidane said of his compatriot Benzema.
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