Vinicius and Rodrygo 'back to their best' after leading Real Madrid rout of Valencia

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti said Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo are "back to their best" after the Brazilian duo starred in Saturday's 5-1 La Liga win over Valencia.

Madrid opened the scoring in the third minute, as full-back Dani Carvajal unleashed a half-volley from the edge of the box after lifting the ball over Valencia defender Jose Gaya with a brilliant first touch.

Toni Kroos sent a freekick off the crossbar shortly after but, despite the hosts' early dominance, Valencia’s Hugo Duro had two great chances to score in the space of a few minutes that goalkeeper Andriy Lunin denied with fine saves from close range.

However, Vinicius and Rodrygo were a constant threat to Valencia’s defence, creating several chances before finally working together to extend Madrid's lead in the 42nd minute.

Rodrygo burst down the right touchline and crossed low to Vinicius who launched himself towards the ball to score with his shoulder in a fabulous diving effort.

In his first game against Valencia after being a victim of racist abuse by some of their fans in May, Vinicius struck again shortly after halftime, striking a clinical curling shot from the edge of the box.

Rodrygo extended Madrid's lead one minute later, tapping in from close range after intercepting a poor touch from goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili.

Rodrygo put the gloss on the scoreline with a fine individual effort in the 84th minute, dribbling past two defenders before netting a tidy finish to the goalkeeper's left.

Striker Hugo Duro scored Valencia's consolation goal two minutes from time with a strike from close range.

"We could have defended better in the first 15 minutes, but after that the game was perfect," Ancelotti said.

Most pleasing for the Italian manager