- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,128,881
- Reaction score
- 59
You must be registered for see images attach
Bayern Munich's Harry Kane (C) and teammates thank the fans after the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal first leg soccer match between Real Madrid and Bayern Munich at Santiago Bernabeu. Peter Kneffel/dpa
Bayern Munich are one step closer the the Champions League semi-finals after beating Real Madrid 2-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday to take the advantage in their Champions League quarter-finals tie.
Luis Diaz broke the deadlock for the Bavarians in the 41st minute and Harry Kane doubled their lead within the first minute of the second half.
Kylian Mbappe pulled one back for Madrid in the 74th - one of the few times Bayern looked at odds with themselves.
This is the first time Bayern beat Madrid since 2012 - a run of nine games without a win - and their first victory at the Bernabeu since 2001. Much of the credit goes to goalkeeper and captain Manuel Neuer, who made several big saves throughout the game.
Arsenal, meanwhile, claimed a valuable 1-0 win at Sporting thanks to Kai Havertz's goal in stoppage-time.
Bayern rule in Madrid
Bayern's big chance in the ninth minute laid out the foundation for what would be a hectic evening in Spain.
Kane, who was making his comeback after fitness issues, laid the ball to Dayot Upamecano, but the defender couldn't reach it and Alvaro Carrera made the clearance on the line.
It was Madrid's turn to take aim at the goal but Neuer showed up to make two big saves, denying Mbappe in the 16th and Vinicius Junior in the 18th.
A sloppy ball exchange almost tuned into Bayern's opener in the 28th. Thiago Pitarch tried to play a one-two with keeper Andriy Lunin inside the box. The ball was intercepted by Serge Gnabry, who took one extra touch and allowed Lunin to clear it.
Neuer was again made to work when Mbappe fired a powerful shot on the angle, but the Bavarian keeper made another huge save in the 29th.
Bayern find the breakthrough and more
It was an open game but Bayern were the ones who broke the deadlock in the 41st.
Vinicius Jr gave the ball away and Bayern carved open the home defence, with Gnabry's throughball finding Diaz on the run and the Colombian forward powered a shot past Lunin.
The game barely resumed and Bayern doubled their lead in the 46th. Aleksandar Pavlovic won the ball from Carrera in midfield and found Michael Olise.
The Frenchman made the run to the edge of the box and drew in the defenders before serving Kane, who fired the ball into the net.
Madrid threaten comeback
Around the hour mark, however, Madrid started to become the better team on the pitch.
Upamecano made a big mistake in the 61st and lost the ball to Vinicius Jr, but under pressure from Neuer, who came out of the goal, the Brazilian missed the target.
Four minutes later, Neuer stretched out his arm and made a fingertip save to deflect Mbappe's dangerous effort round the post.
But the hosts eventually found their way into the net. Trent Alexander-Arnold curled the ball across the face of the goal for Mbappe, who tapped it at the far post.
Neuer made more stunning saves in the final 10 minutes as he secured Bayern returned home with a win ahead of the decisive match in Munich next week.
"It's unfortunate that it wasn't 2-0," Neuer said. "We're happy with the away win but of course we will have a difficult task in Munich."
Madrid keeper Lunin said: "You know you can always have played better. The away match might even be more complicated. But we have the self-belief. This is the Champions League quarter-finals – we didn't expect an easy job."
Havertz rescues Arsenal
Sporting and Arsenal had a much quieter encounter despite both sides hitting the crossbar in the first half.
The Premier League leaders thought they had the opener in the 63rd, but Martin Zubimendi's goal was ruled out because Viktor Gyokeres was offside in the build-up.
But it counted when Havertz collected Gabriel Martinelli's brilliant ball to score the winner in stoppage-time.
"To score a late goal is always nice, especially in front of the fans and we take that result. Still a lot of work to do next week but we take the result, for sure," Havertz said.
Wednesday's schedule includes the first legs of Paris Saint-Germain v Liverpool and Barcelona v Atletico Madrid. The return legs are next week.
You must be registered for see images attach
Bayern Munich's Harry Kane (L) and Joshua Kimmich celebrate after the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal first leg soccer match between Real Madrid and Bayern Munich at Santiago Bernabeu. Peter Kneffel/dpa
You must be registered for see images attach
Bayern Munich's Harry Kane celebrates scoring his side's second goal with teammates Aleksandar Pavlovic (L) and Dayot Upamecano (R) during the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal first leg soccer match between Real Madrid and Bayern Munich at Santiago Bernabeu. Peter Kneffel/dpa
You must be registered for see images attach
Bayern Munich players celebrate their side's firat goal during the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal first leg soccer match between Real Madrid and Bayern Munich at Santiago Bernabeu. Peter Kneffel/dpa
Continue reading...
