Soccer-Brahim brace steers Madrid past plucky Unionistas

Real Madrid earned a hard-fought 3-1 win over Spanish third-tier Unionistas de Salamanca on Wednesday to reach the last 16 of the Copa del Rey. Gareth Bale broke the deadlock with a deflected effort in the 18th minute on his return from illness which kept him out of the Spanish Super Cup and James Rodriguez hit the bar later in the first half at Las Pistas.

Alvaro Romero brilliantly levelled in the 57th minute to delight home fans. However, their joy was short-lived as Brahim Diaz struck five minutes later. The former Manchester City attacker netted again at the death to seal Zinedine Zidane's team's progress in the revamped cup competition.