The Brazil winger scored a stunning opener in the Champions League semi-final, but it wasn’t enough to secure victory for Carlo Ancelotti’s side
On a pitch filled with superstars of the modern game, Vinicius Jr. yet again showed why he deserves to be spoken about as being among the very best players in the world with his performance for Real Madrid against Manchester City in the first leg of their much-anticipated Champions League semi-final.
The Brazilian winger put on a show at Santiago Bernabeu, his quick feet and silky skills only topped by the shot he unleased from 25 yards that almost broke the net after it whizzed past Ederson to give Madrid the lead in the first half.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side had actually been struggling to impose themselves up to that point, but when they have a player of Vinicius’ ability on the pitch, the defending European champions will always have a chance of beating anyone, even this all-conquering City side.
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He will have to repeat the trick in the second leg, however, after Kevin De Bruyne unleashed a thunderbolt of his own in the second half to ensure that Pep Guardiola and his City team will head back to the Etihad Stadium with the tie level at 1-1.
GOALÂ breaks down the winners & losers from Santiago Bernabeu…
WINNER: Vinicius Jr.Vinicius seldom shoots from that far out. The Brazil international’s goals are usually scored from inside the box, after evading a couple of helpless defenders. But this one was lashed into the top corner from 20 yards out. It caught Ederson by surprise, and sent Madrid to an undeserved – yet entirely-predictable – 1-0 lead.
Vinicius was at his best throughout Tuesday’s clash. He came within inches of setting up Benzema early on, terrified the pacey Kyle Walker, and did plenty of defensive work, too.
He now has 10 goal involvements in his last seven Champions League games. That’s not a bad return for a truly world-class player.
Getty ImagesLOSER: Erling HaalandThis was the biggest test of Haaland’s incredible season with City, and for once he could not rise to the challenge.
Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba had clearly done their homework on him, and he was given very little space to work with. Haaland was given a real physical battle, and although he still worked hard holding the ball up, he was ultimately not able to do what he does best, which is score goals. He barely troubled Thibaut Courtois with his two shots and was smothered by a brilliant tackle from Alaba.
After the record-smashing season he has had, Haaland can be forgiven for having the occasional night off. But given how he seriously considered joining Real Madrid last year and has huge admiration for the club, he will be disappointed not to have done more.
Getty ImagesWINNER: Kevin De BruyneWhen you are losing at the home of the 14-times European champions, you need your best players to step up to the plate. While Haaland struggled to break out of his chains, De Bruyne duly answered the call with this absolutely stunning hit, lashing the ball first-time to leave Courtois, one of the best goalkeepers in the world, with no chance.
It was the Belgian’s second long-range strike in a blockbuster match in two weeks after his stunner against Arsenal, and showed that even though Haaland has overshadowed him this season, he is never afraid to take on the responsibility of scoring himself.
De Bruyne had not actually played that well before scoring, given little room to weave his usual magic and misplacing more than a few passes. But when City needed a hero, he gladly came to their rescue.
Getty ImagesLOSER: Karim BenzemaBenzema is, admittedly, a victim of his own very high standards. But by the metrics of last year’s Ballon d’Or-winning campaign, he looks out of sorts at the moment.
The French striker had some of the usual nice moments, dropping deep to link-up play and carving out space in the opposing box. But his quality in crucial moments is simply lacking. He was caught flat-footed on a number of occasions, and made the wrong run a few times.
Strikers are allowed to have rough spells, and going 200 minutes without scoring in the Champions League is hardly cause for crisis. But these are the games that Benzema usually shows up in. If he doesn’t score, he at least makes things happen with his movement or link-up play. But on Tuesday, he was nowhere to be found.
Getty ImagesWINNER: Eduardo CamavingaHe continues to insist that he is not a left-back, but Camavinga is only improving at the position. He was always going to have a key role here, handed the task of defending the tricky Bernardo Silva and accounting for the inevitable overloads that would come with Kyle Walker’s lung-busting runs down the right touchline, but Camavinga dealt with both rather comfortably.
He was excellent in his tackling, mostly shrewd in possession, and enjoyed one marauding run forward that led to Madrid’s opener. One or two diagonal passes broke a stifling City press, too.
It was a shame, in the end, that he made a mistake that led to the visitors’ only goal. The France international gave the ball away just outside his own box, and five passes later, City had scored. Still, it did little to detract from another standout showing.
Getty ImagesLOSER: City’s superstar subsSpare a thought for everyone on the visiting bench who had hoped of both contributing and gracing the Santiago Bernabeu turf. Guardiola didn’t make a single substitution, trusting all the players he had on the pitch and none of the ones with him on the sidelines.
It was not as if he had a weak bench. Riyad Mahrez had set up both goals for Ilkay Gundogan against Leeds on Saturday, while Phil Foden and Julian Alvarez have been very useful impact substitutes lately. They would have fancied their chances of coming on as Madrid began to control the second half, but they will have to wait until next week for theirchance to get a taste of action against the aristocrats of European football.
However, given that 1-1 is an ideal platform from which to build in the second leg at the Etihad Stadium, none of them can argue too much with Guardiola’s decision.
