Real Madrid Won Away With Difficulty

The Madrid team extended their unique winning streak.

The Champions League has returned to European fields. And it returned brightly and beautifully. The first two meetings gave the audience five goals. And if the victory of Manchester City over Copenhagen was easily predictable, then the match between Leipzig and Real was expected with much greater interest. Of course, the Madrid team looked like favorites. Firstly, because wherever Real participates, they will always be the favorite. Secondly, things are clearly better for the Spaniards than their opponent, who has fallen into turbulence in the Bundesliga. But Germans are Germans, and it was clear that they wouldn't give up without a fight. On the eve of the meeting, Real got into a minor trouble: the team's club bus got into an accident from Erfurt airport to Leipzig.

The start of the match was discouraging for the guests. In the first 10 minutes, the hosts could have scored three times, but they didn't convert their chances. More precisely, as a result of one of them, the ball did end up in the net after a corner kick in the second minute. Still, the referee rightly saw a foul on goalkeeper Andriy Lunin. The Leipzig players' vigorous protests, the stands' anger, and other attributes of canceling the home goal did not change the situation. The scoreboard remained 0:0.

Gradually, Real came to life and began to make dangerous attacks, but in the first half, neither team managed to score. At the beginning of the second half, everything was decided by Brahim Diaz's individual skill, who struck the far corner of the goal with a magnificent curling shot. No matter how hard Leipzig tried to equalize, the score remained unchanged. The final outcome of the confrontation will be decided on March 6 in Madrid. Still, Real will likely take advantage of the advantage, albeit insignificant. Instead, they will multiply it.

This success was notable for Madrid. The fact is that in the group stage, the team won six out of six matches. Now Real has seven consecutive victories to their credit. But this is not a record. So far, Ancelotti's gang is slightly behind their own indicators from nine years ago. In 2015, the royal club won 10 out of 10 matches. To repeat this achievement, Madrid must reach the semifinals, winning all three games before it.

By the way, this team looks much more like one of the tournament favorites than the one that couldn't oppose anything to Manchester City last season. The role of Luka Modric is gradually fading into the background. By the way, the Croat spent the entire match on the bench. The midfield, represented by the most experienced Toni Kroos, Diaz, Lucas Vazquez, Federico Valverde, and Eduardo Camavinga, can take control of the center of the field in almost any game. The loss of Karim Benzema doesn't look catastrophic either. And suppose the story of inviting Kylian Mbappe does end up being successful. In that case, imagining what kind of force the club's attack will represent is scary.

Leipzig made a good impression, but to go further, they now need to perform not even a feat but an absolute miracle. But football is often unpredictable, and anything can happen in a single match. Madrid is now a clear favorite, but the return match will be no less attractive.

Published by Patrick Jane
14.02.2024