The long-awaited comeback of Real Madrid
The confrontation between Liverpool and Real Madrid was rightly considered one of the most anticipated in the 1/8 finals of the Champions League.
After all, nominally two of the strongest teams of the Old World met on the Anfield field, based on the results of last year's tournament draw.
True, at the moment both are going through hard times.
And first of all it concerned the Merseysiders.
The departure of Sadio Mane, the protracted adaptation of Darwin Nunez and a series of injuries led to the fact that after 22 rounds, Jurgen Klopp's wards occupied only the eighth line in the Premier League table and risked not getting into the top 4 for the first time since 2015 and flying past the main Eurocup.
However, in the last week the situation began to gradually improve.
Most of the key players recovered from damage, with the exception of Luis Diaz, Arthur Melo and Calvin Ramsey.
The first goals for the Reds were scored by Cody Gakpo, acquired in the winter, and Nunez interrupted a dry series of six meetings in the Premier League and began to gradually work off the €80 million invested in him. for a shoulder injured in the game with Newcastle.
Nevertheless, even this did not prevent the bookmakers from calling the hosts the favorites of the confrontation.
And the reason for this could be not only the factor of the home stands, but also the problems of the guests with the composition.
In addition to suffering from a muscular injury, Ferland Mendy, Carlo Ancelotti could not count on Aurélien Tchouameni, who was not included in the application for the first series of the remake of the 2022 final.
Initially, they did not expect to see Toni Kroos in it, but in the end, at least the German was in stock.
The first half turned out to be very eventful.
Already after a quarter of an hour, Liverpool led with a difference of two goals, the first of which was scored already in the fourth minute.
All the same Nunez took advantage of the failure in the defense of Real Madrid and the elegant movement of the heel helped the Reds to break a 14-year dry streak in home meetings with Real Madrid.
The last time they upset the creamy at Anfield was already in 2009, after which they could not open the opponent's defense in two matches in a row.
However, Ancelotti's wards did not break down and, towards the end of the segment, managed to restore parity.
And even the injury of David Alaba could not stop them.
The start of the comeback was put by Vinicius Junior, who performed another masterpiece.
The Brazilian played with Karim Benzema and sent the ball into the far corner with a magnificent twisted shot from outside the penalty area.
If the first goals of the teams were the result of bright attacking actions, then the second ones were the fiasco of star goalkeepers, who once again reminded that even the most titled and skilled ones can make gross mistakes.
At first, Thibaut Courtois disappointed his fans.
The Belgian decided to demonstrate his technique in his own goalkeeper's area, but instead allowed Mohammed Salah to double the advantage of the hosts.
And then Alison Becker came to the fore.
The Brazilian tried to make a banal clearance, but hit Vinicius right on the heel and helped him get a double.
It seemed that after the break, the teams would continue to demonstrate bright and double-edged football, but Liverpool seemed to have been replaced.
The hosts stopped winning martial arts, there was no trace of the previous intense pressure, and failures in defense began to follow one after another.
At the same time, absolutely nothing happened ahead.
If in the first 45 minutes they gained 1.94 xG, then in the second - by 0.07.
Yes, the fans of the "Reds" can certainly remember the episode with the fall of Nunez after a push in the back, but neither the chief referee Istvan Kovacs nor the video assistant noticed a violation of the rules.
Real Madrid were unstoppable.
The start of the defeat was laid already in the debut of the half, when Eder Militao took advantage of the confusion in the defense of Liverpool and closed the supply of Luka Modric from the corner.
Ten outfield players in red shirts were on duty in their own penalty area at once, but none of them could prevent the Brazilian from striking his head irresistibly.
And after that it was time for Karim Benzema.
The owner of the "Golden Ball" had 11 minutes to score a double and complete the "beating" of the hosts.
In the first case, he was helped a little by a rebound from Joe Gomez's leg, but in the second he performed everything at the highest level.
With a feint, he laid Alison on the lawn, after which he hit an empty target.
And this was preceded by a spectacular cutting transfer of Vinicius exactly between the legs of Virgil van Dijk.
Liverpool conceded five goals in European competition for the first time in history and suffered a crushing defeat, almost losing their chances of reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
Real Madrid, on the other hand, created another miracle and proved that in the main club tournament of the continent, it should never be written off.
Real Madrid players Karim Benzema and Antonio Rudiger
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© Alex Livesey - UEFA / Contributor
Dominance of Napoli
The match in Frankfurt was no less interesting.
And the main intrigue was whether the main contender for the Scudetto would be able to confirm the title of one of the brightest teams of the season in Europe and win the first victory in the Champions League playoffs since 2012.
In the 1/8 finals, Napoli confidently beat Chelsea at home with a score of 3: 1, but could not keep the advantage away and lost in extra time.
A small consolation for the wards of Walter Mazzari could be the fact that they lost only to the future triumphant of the tournament.
This time, in case of a possible failure, there could be no excuse.
With their success in Serie A, Napoli raised the bar of expectations greatly and did not have the right to capitulate in the first round of the playoffs.
After all, this time their opponent was not the grand, which had a superstar line-up, but a rather mediocre Eintracht, albeit playing in the status of the current winner of the Europa League.
As a result, Oliver Glasner's wards failed to create a sensation.
By and large, they only lasted for the first ten minutes.
But neither Randal Colo Muani nor Mario Gotze could take advantage of their chances, and then the initiative passed to the Neapolitans.
They almost completely owned the ball (70 - 30) and even in the first half they could score three times.
But one of the two twin goals of Victor Osimhen was canceled due to offside, and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia failed to realize a 11-meter foul on the same Nigerian.
But after the break, the Georgian midfielder rehabilitated himself and helped Napoli strengthen their leadership.
By this time, Eintracht was already in the minority - Colo Muani was removed for the "overlay", although the verdict of Artur Soares Dias might have seemed ambiguous.
The Frenchman let the ball go far and was reaching for it, when Frank Zambo-Angissa appeared in front, sprawled in a tackle.
But that doesn't change how spectacular Napoli's goal turned out to be.
Having received a pass in the penalty area, Kvaratskhelia did not hit, but kicked the ball with his heel to the oncoming Giovanni Di Lorenzo.
The captain of the guests hit the far corner with a billiard kick and set the final result.
Luciano Spalletti's team successfully started their performance in the playoffs and made a serious bid to advance to the next round.
Previously, this bar did not submit to the Italians.
Napoli players Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Victor Osimkhen
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© DeFodi Images / Contributor