Real Madrid, led by the legendary coach Carlo Ancelotti and his star players, are on the quest of a record 15th European Cup / UEFA Champions League title at the end of the 2023/2024 Season, and RB Leipzig from the German Bundesliga 1 were their hurdle in the round of 16 second leg game at Santiago Bernabéu, having won the first leg by a slender advantage of 1-0 a few weeks ago.
It is safe to say Los Blancos did not find it easy to take on RB Leipzig last night despite Vinícius Júnior extending the team’s lead in the overall tie, as the visiting RB Leipzig stormed back into the game by pulling one back and only fell short by an equaliser following their superior number of shots in the 90 minutes plus added time.
RB Leipzig Showed Tenacity Against the Most Successful Club in Europe
Real of course won the first leg versus the German outfit RB Leipzig thanks to Brahim Díaz’s goal in the 48th minute at Red Bull Arena Leipzig, but as the advantage was not a huge one and there is no longer any away goal rule in the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League, RB Leipzig knew they have the entire second leg to recover from the 1-0 deficit in the overall tie. The Marco Rose-led German side managed to pull off a total of 20 shots against the home team’s 11 despite having slightly lesser possession (46% vs. 54%), and almost went ahead in the game numerous times before Vinícius Júnior netted the second leg opener.
The Brazilian, who was fortunate enough to escape marching orders over an altercation with RB Leipzig skipper and center-back Willi Orbán, benefited from a destructive counterattack by the home side that started with Toni Kroos’s interception. The experienced German midfielder then gave the ball away to his younger counterpart and new summer signing from England Jude Bellingham, who relentlessly ran from almost one penalty box to another before setting up Vinícius Júnior for his 15th goal in 26 games for Ancelotti’s men this season. The 23-year-old would go on to emulate his idol Cristiano Ronaldo‘s ad board celebration afterwards off the devastating counterattacking play.
Vinícius’s effort certainly did not sit well with RB Leipzig, who went on to level things up almost instantly after the Brazilian found the back of the net. Responding to Real’s opening goal, 25-year-old Germany international and left-back David Raum whipped in a delicious cross into the penalty box in the 68th minute, and his captain Orbán, who was one of the subjects in an early scuffle with Vinícius, contacted the ball with great pace and power, beating Andriy Lunin for the second-leg equaliser as a result. To the visitors’ disappointment, that was the only goal they could get all night, meaning they were to be eliminated over a 2-1 aggregate score.
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Los Blancos Advanced to Their Fourth Successful UCL Quarterfinals Following RB Leipzig Triumph
The 1-1 result at Santiago Bernabéu meant Real Madrid are now in their fourth consecutive UEFA Champions League Last 8, and this feat gave the 14-time top-tiered European club football competition champions their 39th appearance at this stage of the continental tournament, which is at least five more than other top teams in Europe. German Bundesliga 1’s Bayern Munich and fellow Spanish La Liga side Barcelona hold the second- and third-most UCL Quarterfinals qualifications at 34 and 22 respectively.
Ancelotti’s Real Madrid were not the only teams that reached the next stage of the competition following their aggregate triumph over RB Leipzig, the English Premier League outfit who knocked Los Blancos out in the semifinals last season Manchester City are also through to the UEFA Champions League Quarterfinals with their victorious results against Danish opponents F.C. Copenhagen. Pep Guardiola’s side replicated their first-leg result with another 3-1 score line in the returning leg at Etihad, and 28-year-old Swiss centre-back Manuel Akanji scored a stunning volley off a corner to open the scoring of this second-leg cup tie. Read here if you did not manage to catch the game live yesterday.
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Don Carlo on Real Madrid 1-1 RB Leipzig: “(The Game Was) Poorly Played.”
Ancelotti did not show any sentiments in his side’s poor and inconsistent display against RB Leipzig at home yesterday. The Italian gaffer said: “The game was bad. Poorly played. With little intensity, with little concern. The psychological aspect has conditioned a lot. We played against a rival with quality and with nothing to lose. And we played with the brake from the beginning. We suffered, but the important thing was to be in the quarterfinals.”
Don Carlo continued by talking about their tactics in the continental cup tie versus RB Leipzig, and believed that Los Blancos were not going to be eliminated as early as the round of 16 in this competition that they have won 14 times in the past. “Yes, the idea was to press more. With means of energy. And the reality is that they played very slow. We played with a low block, very slow, with little verticality. A lot of lateral passing. It was not the best night. We have to say ‘Mea culpa’. Sometimes it can happen in the Champions League. It happened against Chelsea at home in 2022. We never came close to being knocked out.”
“The mental aspect was important. Leipzig tried everything, they are a good team. We have to calmly assess what happened. At this point in the season we’re seven points clear in the league and we’re in fourth place. We have to be self-critical, but not too critical,” Ancelotti ended his post-match conference with the crucial aspect of mental strength when dealing with matches in the UEFA Champions League.
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🔴How vini avoided a red card 🟥 after his?🤔#ChampionsLeague #RealMadrid #ViniJr #Vinicius #Leipzig #RealMadridLeipzig pic.twitter.com/1Bvz6UIJmw
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