Real Madrid took a first step towards the semi-finals of the Champions League on Tuesday evening. In Estadio Alfredo Di Stéfano, Zinedine Zidane’s team was too strong for Liverpool, thanks to a double hit by Vinícius Júnior and a hit by Marco Asensio, 3-1, which will therefore face a tough task next Wednesday. Mohamed Salah scored on behalf of the reigning champion of England.
When Real Madrid made the 2-0 after 36 minutes, the balance was quite clear: eight goals for Real Madrid, zero for Liverpool; three shots on target, zero for Liverpool. Possession was fairly evenly distributed – 52 to 48 percent – but Liverpool did not play their own game. In the first twenty minutes, the visitors still managed to control Real Madrid’s urge to attack quite well, but in their own build-up, the passing was below par. The biggest mistake of the first half was made by Trent-Alexander Arnold prior to the 2-0. After a long ball from Toni Kroos, the right back wanted to return the ball to goalkeeper Alisson Becker, but the header was too short. Asensio was able to intervene, bounced the ball over Alisson and gave the last push just before the goal line.
Just before the goal, Lucas Vázquez had fouled Sadio Mané when a long ball from the right flank was on its way to the attacker. The moment was not considered illegal by referee Felix Brych, after which Real’s breakout led to the 2-0. Nine minutes earlier, the home team had taken the lead. A measured long ball from Toni Kroos, from halfway through the own half, launched Júnior. The Real Madrid forward took the ball between Nathaniel Phillips and Alexander-Arnold on the chest, charged at Alisson and then made no mistake. Vinicius already had a header chance in the opening phase, while a bet by Karim Benzema had ended up in the hands of Alisson; it was clear that Real had the upper hand in the first half.
The dissatisfaction with trainer Jürgen Klopp was reflected in an early substitution: Naby Keïta made way for Thiago Alcántara after 41 minutes. In the second half, Liverpool soon came to 2-1. Georginio Wijnaldum combined on the right flank with Salah, dodged Casemiro’s tackle and served Diogo Jota on his left. He wanted to shoot from inside the penalty area, but a touch from Luka Modric made the ball fall at the feet of Salah, who finished from close range. Just under fifteen minutes later, Real increased the margin to two goals again. Benzema served Modric, who entered the penalty area and sent a tight pass to Vinícius; the Brazilian shot low around the penalty spot in the right corner, although the ball seemed tenable for Alisson.
Liverpool could use an extra away goal very well, but continued to play sloppily. With a save in the short corner, Alisson prevented Benzema from extending the score even further for Real, but Liverpool themselves were hardly involved. Real kept the ball in the team for a long time, by tapping around and patiently looking for an opening. It took a long time for Klopp to switch again: nine minutes before the end, Roberto Firmino and Xherdan Shaqiri came on the line. Not much has changed in the game image. The Liverpool players struggled to reach each other and thus created barely played-out opportunities. Real did not play great either, but has a good starting position for next week.