Champions A night of "suffering" and "liberation" thanks to the "magic" of the Bernabéu: "Something happens in this stadium"
Chronicle Madrid defies death head-on to reach the Champions League semi-finals
Analysis The heroic of the remnants: an unusual defense for the tenth semifinal in 12 years
In the extra time break,
Tuchel
took out a giant blackboard and gave several explanations to the
Chelsea
players , in disbelief after
Rodrygo
forced extra time and
Benzema
headed the net to make it 2-3 that gave
Madrid
the pass .
The German coach opted for tactical talk at the most emotional moment of the meeting.
A few meters away,
Ancelotti
barely spoke a word.
He was silent, letting his footballers breathe, who encouraged each other while the Bernabéu roared, smelling blood.
The tactic against sentiment.
The European champion against a defense made up of
Lucas, Carvajal, Alaba and a lame Marcelo
.
With a
36-year-old Modric
playing defensive pivot and Benzema pressing injured.
You know who won.
Chamartín is a madhouse in which logic often makes no sense.
A scenario in which some of the
most unlikely comebacks in the history of football
have taken place and in which Madrid, mortally wounded, has managed to survive holding on to one last unexpected breath.
«
Madrid must be killed, crushed
.
They have to kill us well, kill yourselves.
You cannot leave him badly injured because
he gets hooked on life
, as long as you leave an open door for him, he takes advantage of it, ”reflects with this newspaper
Santillana
, protagonist of several of those great nights at the
Bernabéu
.
He lived through
Derby County
in 1975, 6-1 against
Anderlecht
in 84-85 (3-0 in the first leg), 4-0 against
Monchengladbach
(5-1 in the first leg) and 5-1 against Inter in 85-86 (3-1 in the first leg). «
PSG's or Chelsea's are not comebacks like ours
, Madrid did not need to risk so much.
This is something else.
We had lost 4-0, we had to throw all the ships into combat and it went well, but our rivals were always left alone against the goalkeeper.
That risk the public knew.
But what has happened now cannot be explained with tactics or technique.
It's a magic wand that appears out there.
With great footballers, yes.
"It goes in the DNA from generation to generation"
The first of the great comebacks that are remembered at the Bernabéu was that of Derby County.
It was the round of 16 of the
European Cup
and Madrid had just lost 4-1 against the English champion.
In the capital, the match ended 5-1.
«We had messed it up in the first leg and we had to come back.
The magic of the Bernabéu is a reality and it has to do with the responsibility that a Madrid player has, "says
Del Bosque
.
And Santillana points out: «The Bernabéu has a special spell on European nights.
For the rival it is a very large psychological burden and for Madrid it is in the DNA, it is transmitted from generation to generation.
The children who lived through the eighties are now parents, and the children who were against Chelsea when they grow up will live through it again.
It is the greatness of Madrid
».
There are quotes to remember in almost any decade.
After the eighties glory came Bayern 2-0 (2-1 in the first leg) in the semis of 01-02,
Ramos' goal in Lisbon
or
Cristiano's hattrick to beat Wolfsburg 3-0
in the quarterfinals. 15-16 after 2-0 in the first leg.
A constant madness.
“
We never stop thinking that we are going to win
”, said
Benzema
sitting in the locker room after beating Chelsea.
Because few foreigners have better understood the history of Madrid and the connection that a footballer feels with the Bernabéu like the Frenchman.
Also
Modric
, chanted by the stands.
Also
Marcelo
, unable to sprint during the last few minutes due to injury.
The three are the backbone of a team that has accumulated ten semifinals in the last twelve seasons.
A modern story full of
agony and happiness
in Chamartín.
A decade of drama and joy
In
2012
: the missed penalty by
Ramos
in the semis against Bayern.
In
2013
: the near comeback against
Dortmund
after losing the first leg 4-1.
In
2014
: Overcoming
Bayern
's monologue to win the first leg 1-0.
In
2015
: beating
Atlético
in the quarterfinals, scoring in the 88th minute and then coming within a goal of forcing extra time against Juve.
In
2016
:
Wolfsburg
and the struggle to beat City 1-0 in the semis.
In
2017
: the eternal tension until they beat
Bayern
in extra time in the quarterfinals.
in
2018
: Benatia's penalty
to Lucas
in minute 93 when the Bernabéu was waiting for extra time after
Juventus
' 0-3 and the drama to tie
Bayern
2-2 and reach the final in Kiev.
Of the
29 heats
he has played in the ten times he has reached the semis these years,
18 have been with the return leg at home
and 11 with the return leg.
La
30º
will also celebrate its decisive match in Concha Espina.
In total,
Madrid have come from behind 23 times
in continental rounds with the second leg at home.
«
The Bernabéu is a mausoleum of football
», specifies Santillana.
Funerary monument on the grave of an important person, says the dictionary.
Well that.
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Cristiano Ronaldo
Daniel Carvajal
Marcelo
real Madrid
Carlo Ancelotti