Early goals from Ricardo Carvalho and Mesut Ozil gave Real Madrid a comfortable 2-0 win over neighbors Atletico Madrid in the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.

The win means Real remain top of the BBVA Primera Liga and takes their unbeaten record against Atletico to an impressive 18 matches.

Real coach Jose Mourinho named an unchanged side for the third consecutive league match, while Atletico Madrid coach Quique Sanchez Flores produced a surprise in his starting 11, including Mario Suarez instead of Pablo Assuncao in central midfield.

Mourinho's tactics looked to pay off quickly as Real took the lead after 12 minutes. The ball was knocked into the Atletico area and took a deflection that left it in the path of onrushing defender Ricardo Carvalho, who beat David de Gea with a low shot.

Six minutes later Ozil doubled Real's lead: Ronaldo went down very easily on the edge of the Atletico area and the German hit a low free kick which evaded both players in the visitors' wall and went in at the far post.

De Gea looked to have badly misjudged the German's effort and Atletico were almost out of the game just after the quarter hour.

Quique's side had looked to lack confidence, but once the game was escaping from their grasp, they finally began to play some football and Jose Antonio Reyes had an excellent claim for a penalty turned down when Xabi Alonso clearly handled hit effort at goal.

Iker Casillas then produced an excellent shot to tip Reyes' shot over the bar, ten minutes before halftime.

The second half began with Higuain smashing a spectacular volley just wide of the Atletico goal, while the visitors responded with a great effort from Forlan which hit the Real post with Casillas beaten.

Both sides went close from distance as the half progressed, but the biggest drama arrived eight minutes from time when Carvalho was poleaxed by a flying elbow from Atletico substitute Diego Costa.

By then the game was as good as over, but in truth it had been ever since Ozil scored Real's second goal in the 18th minute.