Manchester City is the European champion, but Real Madrid is the king. And when he seems to be dead and with the crown about to slip from his fingers, he resists until his last breath and, in an incredible penalty shootout after dozens of chances for the English, he emerges to reach the semifinals.
The Whites, who suffered for 120 minutes and during the first two shots of extra time, with Julián Álvarez’s goal and Luka Modric’s miss, ended up heading towards the semi-finals against Bayern Munich, with a huge Bellingham on one leg and a Rüdiger who did not feel the pressure of the last launch.
Real Madrid, as always, avoided falling to have the last laugh and to see Bellingham running towards the 3,000 fans and celebrating a victory that only seemed close in the first ten minutes.
Because the first ten minutes of this match had little or no resemblance to what happened last year, when City got tired of giving passes and distressing a timid and surrendered Real Madrid.
Before a more than lukewarm audience, unbecoming of nights like these, the biggest on the continent, Madrid stood up to the triplet champion, tamed the ball and avoided a trumpet exit. He deactivated the field factor and hit the first shot he had. This time the coin landed on his side.
After the twelfth minute, Carvajal, without complications, hit a shot that caught City off guard. It was a ball without apparent danger, but Bellingham, from the tenth lane, brought it down like Zidane. He settled the ball, combined with Valverde and the Uruguayan gave life to Vinícius inside. He was called offside, but it was broken by Walker at the far post. The Brazilian, gaining the baseline, put in a hard cross that Rodrygo finished off first to hit Ederson. Like last year, when Kroos scored splinters with a shot from 25 meters, fortune was turning its back on Madrid.
But there was a second chance. The ball remained alive and at Rodrygo’s feet, who pushed as he pleased. He was looking back, for fear of a possible offside, but Orsato and the lineman said go ahead. He merged with the 3,000 white fans and Madrid, condemned by many before it began, was alive.
The definitive survival exercise then began. City had scored in 97% of the games he had played since their last defeat. City had to score.
Haalan headed the crossbar, Lunin stretched against De Bruyne and Rüdiger arrived at the last moment to stop Grealish’s shot.
City flirted with the goal and implanted a permanent feeling of fear in the Madrid area, which did not stop receiving balls and suffering with each stop in two halves by Lunin and facing Grealish and Doku to Carvajal.
When the Belgian got rid of Carvajal and it was Valverde who closed him down, the problem arose. Doku faced the Uruguayan, left him behind and put in a cross that Rüdiger expelled as best he could. Camavinga did not chase De Bruyne and the Belgian, with a shot inside the area, smashed it into the net, in a shot that was impossible for Lunin.
Madrid, which had been bottled up throughout the second half, looked into the abyss. And De Bruyne was able to give him the push. A shot by himself, from the penalty spot, went over the crossbar to the surprise of the entire Etihad, who savored the 2-1 score from the moment the ball was around his foot.
Between City’s bathroom and bathroom, extra time arrived. Another thirty minutes of suffering, another thirty minutes of holding on with Bellimghan melted, everyone behind and Vinícius who was injured in the third race that he lost of the night with Walker.
His image, losing as much time as possible, was the best reflection of Madrid, which, even in these circumstances, was on the verge of making it 1-2 with a shot by Rüdiger from a Brahim center.
Already in the second half of extra time, Carvajal was stiff and Ancelotti had to turn to Éder Militao as an emergency solution, while Guardiola removed De Bruyne and brought in Kovacic to have even more control.
With both teams fused, the tie went to penalties. And with the last breath, Madrid passed.
Neither shooting first, nor with Modric missing his first shot, City were able to dethrone the king. The Croatian’s failure was followed by an incomprehensible error by Bernardo, who threw him into the hands of Lunin, and by a save from the Ukrainian, hero of the night, to Kovacic. Bellinhgham, Nacho and Rüdiger did not fail and Madrid, almost without knowing how, returned to the semifinals.
Yes, City is the champion, but Madrid is the king.
#IRReal #Madrid #Republic
