Real Madrid midfielder Fede Valverde was pleased to be part of victory over Alaves on Saturday.

Real defeated Alaves 3-0 to strengthen their place at the top of the LaLiga table.

Valverde said, “I'm pleased with the win. We struggled in the first half and the coach told us at half-time that we needed to work more on our build-up play and find spaces. In the second half, we found more spaces and were able to make the most of them because we've got some quick players. You could see that when we had greater control of the game and showed greater patience in the final third, we created more chances and got the goals. We worked hard and everything worked out well for us."

On goalscorer Marco Asensio, Valverde also said: “He has immense quality and deserves it. He always works hard, is a good teammate and a good person. We know what he brings to Madrid and when the game is tight and you've got a player who's capable of doing something like that, you've got to be thankful for it.

“I want to thank the fans for their support because we came into this one on the back of a defeat and needed their backing. The fans always spur you on and this win is for them because they always get right behind us."