For someone, visits to the French capital may be the most memorable event in their lives, but Real Madrid, after the first match of the 1/8 finals of the UEFA Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain, would probably like to forget that late evening in mid-February 2022. The flagship of Spanish football lost to Kilian Mbappe just before the final whistle (0:1), as a result of which the return match was already forced to start from far from the most comfortable position for the lagging side.
The teams of Carlo Ancelotti and Mauricio Pochettino had almost a month and several fights in the domestic arena in order to draw the right conclusions after the game at the Parc des Princes. The Whites in this segment have achieved significant success, improving their own confidence. Real did not lose a single point, while the Red and Blues managed to lose in two of the three matches of Ligue 1, and failure in the game against Nice (0:1) could still be expected, but the defeat of Nantes (1:3) happened against the background of success in the first game against the Galacticos. By the way, in you want to win more with huge bonuses, higher odds, and without risks – visit our betting sites for football in India rankings page. A fresh review of the most reliable offers for Indian bettors will be helpful for you.
Against this background, the mentors have prepared new plans for the confrontation at the Santiago Bernabeu, but the Italian specialist was already forced to focus on the absence of Casemiro in the support zone and Ferlan Mendy on the left flank. At the same time, the Argentine coach could rely on Neymar, which was considered a significant increase compared to the game in Paris.
In the first half of the match, the teams tried to play in a fairly open style. Real may have outdone their opponents in the other half, but Mbappe’s counterattacks, which actively supported passes from masters like Neymar and Lionel Messi, were no less dangerous. As a result, the French forward of Paris scored twice in the first half, but only one of his effective shots was mirrored on the scoreboard. Want to know more about football news in India and don’t miss the important news? Subscribe to footbal24.in and receive the latest updates to your email.
PSG took the lead shortly before the break when Neymar launched Killian in a jerk on the left flank, and he finally successfully punched Courtois with a shot in the near corner. A few minutes earlier, Mbappe had moved Mendes’ shot from offside to the same point, suggesting a greater degree of success for Pochettino’s tactics than his more experienced teammate.
Real’s moments in the first half were Benzema’s individual ability to cling to the ball in front of someone else’s penalty area, but Karim then did not land in the net. The situation had the preconditions for a change immediately after the break when Real began to press hard on their opponents. It even seemed that PSG allowed the hosts too much for a moment.
However, in the 54th minute, the heartbeat of the fans of the Madrid club slowed down again to zero – it was Mbappe deftly beat Courtois on the left flank of the penalty area and then hit the empty net. Offside again! The referee, at this point, undoubtedly saved the Vikings from giant problems. And that’s what happened next! This is the story of the whole play. By the way, if you want to receive interesting articles about football, we recommend visiting the football blog on a popular portal.
As soon as the full game was over, Donnarumma decided to tinker with the ball on the left flank of his penalty area. As a result, he was immediately attacked by Karim Benzema. The French striker forced the goalkeeper to make a mistake with the transfer to the opposite side of the field, after which he completed a return pass from Vinicius. Real completely seized the initiative at that moment, and PSG fell apart right before their eyes.
As a result, in the 76th minute, Benzema completed a thin pass from Modric to the right corner of the goalkeeper from the depths and two minutes later acted as the final link for a lightning counterattack of his team, with a goal pass from Vinicius’s pass. The Parisians tried to squeeze something in return during the remaining match, but all these efforts remained in the period before Donnarumma’s mistake. After that, there was only one team on the field. Thus, Real goes to the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League. For the French Paris Saint-Germain, the European Cup season is over, although they could play a final game at the home stadium at Parc de Princes.
FEATURED IMAGE “Benzema during the 2014–15 season” by Chris Deahr Karim Benzema vs. FC Schalke 04 is licensed under CC BY 2.0
