Jostled by Leipzig as in the first leg, Real Madrid managed to qualify for the quarter-finals of the Champions League on Wednesday evening at the Bernabéu, after a 1-1 draw. Vinicius opened the scoring for the Merengues.
Yet leader without rival in La Liga, Real Madrid displayed a distressing level of play during their two matches in the round of 16 of the Champions League. Carlo Ancelotti’s men miraculously won 1-0 in Saxony three weeks ago, they held on in the second round at the Bernabéu on Wednesday evening, with a 1-1 draw sufficient to advance to the quarter-finals. final.
The Italian technician had decided to strengthen his team by aligning Federico Valverde in place of Rodrygo, but the Merengues were uninspired in the game and could have suffered. After Benjamin Sesko in the first leg, it was his attacking partner Loïs Openda who missed all his opportunities, unable to target the slightest shot.
Bellingham for Vinicius
Eduardo Camavinga was replaced upon returning from the locker room by Rodrygo and, if Real did not shine more, a ball from Jude Bellingham turned the match around. Vinicius made an excellent cross call and opened the scoring on the hour mark (65th). Ten minutes earlier, the Brazilian crack could have been excluded for a gesture of humor towards Willi Orban…
Leipzig believed in it until the end, equalizing in the wake of “Vini” goal by Orban (68th), but Marco Rose’s team did not manage to snatch extra time. Olmo sent the last German opportunity, in added time, onto the top of the crossbar (92nd). A more skillful team in front of the opposing goal would have hurt Real very, very badly…
