Skipper Marcelo admitted Real Madrid have been âreally, really damagedâ by a disappointing season after Karim Benzemaâs hat-trick secured a 3-0 La Liga victory over Athletic Bilbao.
Real occupy third place in the table with five games remaining, a distant 13 points behind champions elect Barcelona and with their Champions League dreams ended in the last 16 by Ajax.
Asked about a lacklustre first-half display against Athletic, Marcelo told LaLiga TV: âItâs complicated at the end of the season when youâre not playing for anything.
âWe had to find the motivation but we came here in front of the fans and yes, the first half was difficult. In the second half, it wasnât quite as difficult for us, but I think we played well.
âItâs not a question of whether the season is over or not, we have to always work when we pull this jersey on. We know itâs been a difficult season â weâre really, really damaged by whatâs happened this season, but we have to keep going forward.
âAll the players who play for Real Madrid, all the players who donât play, we all have to do everything for the badge of Real Madrid.â
If Zinedine Zidaneâs men were distinctly unimpressive before the break, Benzema ensured they emerged with the points with a devastating display of finishing after it as he took his tally for the season to 30 goals in all competitions.
He headed them in front from Marco Asensioâs inviting 47th-minute cross and doubled his tally from Luka Modricâs corner with 14 minutes remaining before completing his treble in stoppage time with Bilbao keeper Iago Herrerin in no manâs land.
Marcelo said: âWe all know that Karim has got so much quality. What he brings to the club, scoring goals or not, heâs one of the leaders of this team and the truth is Iâm very happy for him to score the hat-trick.
âBut heâll be happier with the win than with the hat-trick.â
Athletic gave as good as they got before the break without troubling Real keeper Keylor Navas unduly but were ultimately able to keep Benzema at bay.
Skipper Iker Muniain said: âIn the first half it was very equal, We had the odd chance that we werenât able to finish off, and then in the second half we were close to scoring, but we didnât score and they hit us on the break.
âThey went 1-0 up too quickly and that meant we were always playing from behind. We were really determined to get a result from this game but we failed.
âWe knew they werenât playing for anything but we also know the quality theyâve got, the players theyâve got. Any of these players can score and make the difference in a game.
âMaybe if things had worked out differently before that first goal, it would have been a different game.â
Provided by Press Association Sport