Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane was without his main forward stars against Espanyol but watched James Rodriguez and Karim Benzema step up.
Zinedine Zidane praised goalscorers James Rodriguez and Karim Benzema after a 2-0 triumph at Espanyol extended Real Madrid's phenomenal winning run in La Liga.
Madrid made it four wins from four in the current campaign to lead Barcelona by three points with victory at the Estadi Cornella-El Prat and 16 consecutive LaLiga wins in total – matching the mark established by their bitter rivals in 2010-11.
Zidane was unable to call on Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale, who sat out the match with illness and a hip injury respectively, but Rodriguez stepped up on his first start of the season with a superb solo effort in first-half stoppage time.