Abraham P. Romero Madrid

Madrid

Updated Wednesday, March 6, 2024-22:59

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Madrid

is in the

Champions League quarterfinals

with

a lot of suffering and less happiness

, the same feeling that

Carlo Ancelotti

admitted

in the preview of the match against Leipzig.

In a very tough duel, imprecise and with less blood than the occasion demanded, a goal from

Vinicius was enough to balance

Orban

's

and overcome, with the agony of the Chamartín nights, a

trap eliminator

.

On the return of the

European Cup

to the Bernabéu, Ancelotti decided to innovate.

The Italian is a coach in love with the midfielder, the position that most exemplifies the evolution of this sport.

Physical, technical, with power, passing and scoring,

Carletto

has them with all kinds of virtues.

And now, obsessed with modern football, the transalpine wants them all.

For this reason, on a day as important and as trap as a second leg of the continental round of 16 after having won the first leg, Ancelotti changed the scheme and included his five favorite midfielders:

Tchouaméni, Kroos, Camavinga, Valverde and Bellingham

.

The puzzle worked on the blackboard, but not on the grass.

He put aside the 4-4-2 of the entire season and showed a

4-3-3 with the Englishman as the 9

and the Uruguayan as the right winger.

And Madrid was shipwrecked in a first half in which Leipzig spared several lives.

Something that can be done in Chamartín.

The half-time whistles were deserved for a disastrous initial stretch.

Slow, predictable and imprecise

, Madrid did not flow between the lines and did not find Vinicius, the only spark of an attack that was too flat.

And behind him he suffered, saved only by the mistakes of

Openda

, a rival forward.

He gave the feeling, once again, that the white team needs to see itself half dead on the edge of the European Cup to truly wake up.

In the first breath of the duel, Madrid was already showing weakness.

In the 12th, Openda began his carousel of opportunities.

He first shot wide from the front when he had

Olmo

unmarked on the right and in the 15th, in another against the visitor, he crossed his shot too far to the left of the Ukrainian goalkeeper.

Ancelotti opened his arms on the bench in despair.

And on the grass,

only Kroos showed clarity

.

Madrid was playing, but I didn't know what.

With Valverde on the right, the three in the middle, Camavinga, Tchouaméni and Kroos, got in the way of creation and none of them created vertical passing lines to combine with Bellingham and Vinicius.

The Englishman, also erratic, managed to go down to meet the base, losing a man, almost the only one, reference above.

Meanwhile, Leipzig waited for opportunities with a very advanced pressing line, with

Sesko and Openda

in the center and Simons and Olmo on the wings.

It was impossible for the Whites to overcome the first German advance, which had new opportunities close to half-time.

Simons

, the best, tested Lunin from outside the area and Openda had a very clear volley inside the area that touched the right net of the Madrid goalkeeper.

Whistles at break

Madrid had not shot on goal and only had a corner after a timid attempt by Bellingham inside the area.

Nothing more than one of the favorites for the title in the second leg of a tie.

Dangerous and somewhat embarrassing, hence the

massive whistles

at the Bernabéu at half-time.

Ancelotti went through the locker room and exchanged chips, convinced of his team's mistakes.

Camavinga

, inconsequential and imprecise, stayed in the booth for

Rodrygo

to enter .

The Brazilian is on a bad scoring streak in the League, and perhaps that is why the coach decided to sit him out on a day like this, but he has dribbling and mobility, something that Madrid lacked in the first half.

His start in the 50th minute caused a dangerous foul in favor of the white team and encouraged the stands, disenchanted in the most important tournament for the club.

A tournament that was in danger when Vinicius pushed Orban in an argument and the Germans cried for a red card.

The push, in the chest and not in the face, was yellow.

First Vinicius, then Orban

Madrid found respite when they stopped calculating and surrendered to their greatest virtues: the starts of

Bellingham and Vinicius

.

In the 65th minute, the Englishman started a counterattack, advanced and waited for the Brazilian to uncheck, diagonally seeing the free space.

He gave up Jude and Vini, first, defined against Gulacsi.

Leizpig refused to give up and reacted to tie the tie again after three minutes.

Orban

headed in front of Nacho after a

Raum

cross and put fear in the Bernabéu.

The fight was once again within one round and the duel entered into agony.

That of the visitors for causing the extension and that of Madrid for avoiding it.

Ancelotti introduced Modric for Kroos and Joselu for Bellingham to calm the clash and he achieved it with sighs of relief.

Madrid put its hand in the fire and almost got burned.