Liverpool took the lead as the reigning European champion by winning against Real Madrid (2-0) this Wednesday, November 27. The Spanish club, deprived of the Brazilian Vinicius, saw Kylian Mbappé miss the equalizing penalty.
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It’s not the revenge they were hoping for, but Liverpool will certainly savor this victory over Real Madrid won in their Anfield lair red with happiness. A victory which erases fifteen years of waiting to finally beat the Spaniards and which takes away some of the frustration of having lost two Champions League finals in recent years (2018, 2022) against Real.
Liverpool beat the reigning European champion at the end of a match which they clearly dominated and which they could have “killed” several times, such as in the 70th minute when Mohamed Salah completely missed his penalty.
Kylian Mbappé ghostly
Despite this failure, the Egyptian and the Reds contained an uninspired Madrid team which logically gave in at the start of the second half on a goal from Alexis Mac Allister (52nd). The Argentine striker finally managed, with a cross shot, to beat Thibault Courtois who pushed back the inevitable for a long time.
Opposite, Real Madrid, without Vinicius, their current best player, thought they could rely on their striker Kylian Mbappé. But against the Reds, the French international once again displayed his difficulties to make the difference, and to regain confidence. To make matters worse, Mbappé, who had the ball for the equalizer at his feet (61st), failed by missing his penalty in front of Irish goalkeeper Kelleher. The crossing of the desert is therefore not about to end for the captain of the France team.
Madrid, last of the roadblocks…
In Liverpool, Cody Gakpo’s goal (76th), six minutes after Mohamed Salah’s missed penalty, allowed Liverpool to materialize on the scoreboard its logical domination over the overwhelmed Madrilenians. Carlo Ancelotti’s men thus occupy the last qualifying place in the play-offs to reach the round of 16 after a record of two wins and three defeats in five days of the Champions League.
Liverpool is the only team to have achieved success with five wins in five matches. A great performance and a boost of confidence before the clash this weekend against Manchester City in the English championship.
First defeat for Monaco, overthrown by Benfica (3-2)
AS Monaco lost for the first time this season in the Champions League against Benfica (3-2), Wednesday in Monaco, but remains placed among the eight teams which would be directly qualified for the round of 16 before the last three days. While the Monegasques thought they had done the hardest part by leading 2 to 1, despite the exclusion of Singo (58th), thanks to goals from Ben Seghir (13th) and Magassa (67th), the Lisbonites turned the game around in the final moments with achievements from Cabral (84th) and Amdouni (88th) after that of Pavlidis returning from the locker room.
Results of the 5th day
Wednesday November 27, 2024
Red Star Belgrade –Stuttgart 5-1
Sturm Graz – Girona 1-0
Monaco – Benfica Lisbon 2-3
Bologna – Lille 1-2
Liverpool – Real Madrid 2-0
Aston Villa – Juventus 0-0
Celtic – Club Bruges 1-1
Dinamo Zagreb – Dortmund 0-3
PSV Eindhoven – Shakhtar Donetsk 3-2
Tuesday November 26, 2024
Sparta Prague – Atlético Madrid 0-6
Slovan Bratislava – AC Milan 2-3
Bayern Munich – Paris SG 1-0
Barcelona – Brest 3-0
Sporting CP – Arsenal 1-5
Manchester City – Feyenoord 3-3
Inter Milan – Leipzig 1-0
Leverkusen – Salzburg 5-0
Young Boys – Atalanta Bergamo 1-6