Real Madrid emerged with a draw from a tough battle in Munich as they sealed a 2-2 tie with Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena in the Champions League semi-final first leg. Vinícius Júnior got both goals for the visitors, the first against the run of play with a fine finish from an exquisite Toni Kroos pass, and then the second from the penalty spot. In between, Bayern took the lead with two goals in four minutes from Leroy Sane and Harry Kane, who also scored a penalty.
Three answers
1. Could Real Madrid equal a new record unbeaten run in the Champions League?
Heading into this game in Germany, Los Blancos were unbeaten in 10 consecutive matches in the Champions League this season with seven wins and three draws. The only time that run was longer was in 2016/17, when the team went 11 unbeaten on route to winning the competition. All that the team needed to do to match that record was to avoid falling to defeat to Bayern in Germany, and when Vinícius Júnior converted from the spot, he ensured that they would do just that. Now, draw or a victory in the second leg in Madrid will mean that Carlo Ancelotti’s side have the longest ever unbeaten run in a single Champions League season in the club’s history by taking it to 12, unlike in 2017 when the semi-final second leg saw a meaningless defeat on the night to Atlético Madrid.
2. Would the line-up be as predictable as it seemed, if Ferland Mendy is fit?
You’d be hard-pressed to find a source that have the correct predicted line-up to match the side that Carlo Ancelotti eventually selected. Most sources and media outlets expected Aurélien Tchouameni to start in central defence and Eduardo Camavinga in midfield, with the only potential surprise being if Ferland Mendy wasn’t as fit as Ancelotti claimed in his pre-match press conference. The Italian sprung a surprise when he went with a different team, starting Nacho in central defence and moving Tchouameni into midfield, with Camavinga starting on the bench. It was a show of faith in the captain, even if he was taken off on 64 minutes, in what was a makeshift defence and looked like one at times. The real choice that did seem to cost Real Madrid as a downgrade was the inclusion of Lucas Vázquez, enforced by the suspension to Dani Carvajal, as he committed the needless foul which saw Bayern awarded a penalty.
3. Would this be a repeat of Manchester City at the Etihad?
There were several similarities between this game and the quarter-final second leg in Manchester only a few weeks ago. Bayern Munich dominated possession in the early stages and came out with great intensity, but Real Madrid defended solidly again. The difference came in that Real Madrid looked less focused and intense in their concentration at times, there were slack moments where the press looked unstructured and the Bayern wingers pulled the two Real Madrid full-backs out of position and created spaces in the defensive line. Following Bayern taking the lead, after a second goal in four minutes, Real Madrid did look more like the team that we are used to seeing. The problem for Real Madrid was that they never looked fluid in possession and struggled to build momentum at any time in the tie. The decision to deploy Tchouameni in midfield had its merits, but the absence of Camavinga’s ball progression was clear and this was far from Real Madrid at their best on the ball.
Three questions
1. Was this the latest demonstration that Vinícius Júnior is a big game player?
Superstars are defined by how they perform when all eyes are on them, and in the case of Vinícius Júnior, there can certainly be no complaints. This was his third knock-out brace in a Champions League tie, having previously scored two against Liverpool twice, in 2021 and 2023. It also meant that over the course of the four big games for Real Madrid in the past month, twice against Manchester City, once against Barcelona and now against Bayern Munich, he has scored three goals and registered three assists. The Brazilian was the team’s key attacking outlet, recording three shots on target and scoring with two of them, and his pace and movement looked a constant threat to the Bayern defence who struggled to handle him. In doing so, he took his tally to five goals and five assists in eight games in the competition this season, scoring or assisting against every team he’s come up against.
2. Is anyone in the world as good at passing as Toni Kroos?
The assist that Toni Kroos produced for Vinícius Junior’s goal was simply one of the best passes that anyone has played in any competition anywhere this season. And probably over a much longer time period too. The German played an incredible 15 line-breaking passes in the first half alone, while the next highest number of any player on the field was just five. Wearing the captain’s armband after Nacho went off just after the hour mark, he bossed the Real Madrid team from start to being replaced by Brahim Díaz in a midfield change with 15 minutes left on the clock. He had created more chances than anyone else on the field with three, the most successful tackles with two, and recorded a 96% passing accuracy. Ancelotti may have been looking for energy with the change, but he did lose one of his best players on the night with the swap.
3. What does this mean for the second leg?
A 2-2 draw in the first leg means that this game is wide open ahead of the return fixture at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu next week, which surely makes Real Madrid clear favourites to progress to the final. Carlo Ancelotti will almost certainly play that tag down, and perhaps with good reason. Real Madrid were the favourites before this game, and Bayern put up more of a fight in their own backyard than many expected them to against a side who have looked a level above in Real Madrid. Bayern’s record away from home this season is not the best, with nine wins, two draws and four defeats from 15 Bundesliga games, and that may play into the hands of Real Madrid, who will be looking to play the game on their own terms in the Spanish capital and with the game there for the taking.
