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Key events
78 min Alexander-Arnold’s cross for the goal was… well actually it wasn’t really a cross at all, it was a pass, and an utterly brilliant one.
77 min Luis Diaz is booked for fouling somebody. Alexander-Arnold’s free-kick from the left is headed over his own bar by Kane. Pulsating stuff.
76 min “In my lifetime as AC Milan hardcore supporter I have experienced twice the demolishing of hyper-celebrated Spanish teams: the 5-0 of Real Madrid at San Siro in 1989 and the 4-0 in Athens of Barcelona in 2004,” writes Giovanni Cafagna. “ Still have the tickets. Those memories will never leave me, and I am happy for the Bayern supporters at the Bernabeu, for in thirty years time, if their team has fallen into disgrace like mine has, they will look forward to mention those memories in an email to the Rob Smyth of the future.”
If I am doing this in 30 years’ time, sometihng has gone bad- hang on, I’ll be alive and sentient in my eighties!
75 min Within seconds of the kick-off, Kane hooks an imaginative volley on the turn that flashes not far wide of the far post. Bayern had become a bit sloppy at 2-0 but that goal will presumably wake them up.
Real Madrid are never dead, not in this competition. They’ve had a number of chances in the last 10 minutes and now Mbappe has taken one. Alexander-Arnold played a give-and-go with Valverde on the right and threaded a glorious angled cross to give Mbappe a tap-in at the far post. Neuer did brilliantly to get something on the shot as he fell towards his own goal, but I think the ball was over the line and Brahim Diaz made sure anyway.
GOAL! Real Madrid 1-2 Bayern Munich (Mbappe 74)
It’s been coming.
73 min Carreras fouls Olise, who will be living rent-free in his head for the forseeable.
72 min Mbappe is still down after that foul from Tah, who caught him on the back of the achilles. I don’t think it was deliberate but it was certainly painful.
Mbappe’s back up now.
71 min: Real substitution Brahim Diaz on, Arda Guler off.
71 min Tah is booked for a foul on Mbappe. He’s not on a yellow card, or rather he wasn’t.
69 min: Double substitution for Bayern Alphonso Davies and Jamal Musiala – imagine having those two on your subs bench – replace Konrad Laimer and Serge Gnabry.
68 min: Chance for Mbappe! Suddenly Real are creating chances galore. Mbappe gives the ball to Vinicius Jr, who waits for Mbappe’s run on the outside and plays a nice reverse pass into the area. Mbappe runs round the ball and sweeps a shot just wide of the far post.
67 min Another chance goes begging for Real, with Eder Militao heading the resulting corner over the bar. He wasn’t quite able to get over the ball.
66 min: Outstanding save by Neuer!
Mbappe receives a pass from Bellingham on the edge of the area and cracks a superb low drive that goes through the legs of the lunging defender Tah. Neuer plunges to his right and just manages to brush the ball past the post. That’s his best save of the game.
Real have been a bit of a mess, yet they could easily have scored four.
65 min Kimmich’s corner flashes across the face, hits a Real defender and rebounds to Diaz. He makes room for a shot that is blocked in the six-yard box. That was another chance for Bayern.
63 min Olise dances infield from the right and flashes a curler just over the bar. He’s been outrageously good.
62 min: Double substitution for Real Jude Bellingham and Eder Militao replace Thiago Pitarch and Dean Huijsen.
61 min: Vinicius Jr. misses a sitter!
The jeers for Carreras sound like cheers in comparison to the reaction Vincius Jr. has just elicited from the home fans. Upamecano’s off-balance backheader was well short, allowing Vinicius to charge through on goal. He went round Neuer, who had come to the edge of the area, but was forced a bit wide and screwed his shot into the side netting. Oof. That could have been a turning point.
60 min It’s a surprise we haven’t seen Jude Bellingham yet. Or any of the Real subs.
59 min Jeers from the home fans as Carreras lets the ball run under his foot and out of play. The poor guy has had a horrible game.
59 min I didn’t see Ajax’s mythical 2-0 win at the Bernabeu in 1995, as it was my first term at university and y’know, but I’d imagine their performance was similar to Bayern’s tonight. There are very few precedents for a team dominating Real like this on their own patch.
58 min Olise’s deep corner is headed wide by Upamecano, arriving late beyond thr far post. Lunin was in no man’s land and that looked a really good chance.
57 min Real lose the ball in their own third yet again. This time it’s Valverde of all people, but he does at least recover to make an important block from Kane’s shot.
57 min “I haven’t seen a team dominate like this since Burnley beat Middlesbrough 2-1 away to secure promotion back in 2023,” honks Peader de Burca.
56 min Olise beats Carreras with contemptuous ease, charges infield to the edge of the D and rifles a low drive that is pretty well held by the diving Lunin.
54 min Kane’s goal was his 11th in the Champions League this season and his 49th in all competitions. Who does he think he is, Clive Allen?
53 min Vinicius Jr. shoots high and wide from distance.
53 min “Sad to hear of Mircea Lucescu’s passing,” writes Colum Fordham. “A great coach and charismatic figure, who was widely respected, especially in Italy coaching Brescia with Hagi and other Romanian players.”
52 min Real were two goals down to Manchester City after 180 minutes of the semi-final in 2022 and still went through. Bayern have been great but Vincent Kompany will know that you’re never safe against Real, at least not until the 12th goal goes in.
50 min “The all-conquering Real Madrid managed by Zinedine Zidane rested on two pillars,” writes Kári Tulinius. “They tried to make the game as chaotic as possible, giving his brilliant players space to do their thing. The second was a rock-solid defence, ready to soak up any pressure. Arbeloa seems to be trying to recreate that tactic, but it’s a tribute act, not the real thing. He doesn’t have the players for that style, as brilliant as they are as individuals.”
49 min Valverde slithers into the area and almost benefits from a fortunate roll of the ball. I say ‘almost’ because Upamecano arrived in the six-yard box to welt the ball to safety.
49 min The TV commentators are focussing on Real’s flaws. That’s fair enough, but they shouldn’t obscure a performance of stunning authority from Bayern.
48 min Bayern are rampant. Olise’s shot from the angle is pushed round the near post by Lunin, who then falls on Stanisic’s deflected shot from the resulting corner.
Real lost the ball for the umpteenth time and were punished with leadpipe cruelty by Bayern. Pavlovic picked Carreras’s pocket on the halfway line and found Olise, who moved to the edge of the area and laid an inviting square pass towards Kane. He used the defenders as a screen and swept a lovely curling shot into the bottom-right corner. Lunin got a slight touch on the shot but he saw it late and couldn’t kept it out.
GOAL! Real Madrid 0-2 Bayern (Kane 46)
Harry Kane scores after 20 seconds of the second half!
46 min Real begin the second half; no changes on either side.
Vinicius Jr., who spent the last five minutes of the first half spoiling for a row with Michael Oliver, needs to be careful. He’s one of the many Real players on a yellow card and will miss the second leg if he’s booked.
Half-time entertainment
Half time: Real Madrid 0-1 Bayern Munich
Now that’s what I call a European away performance. Bayern Munich controlled the game from the off, pressing high and playing some dizzingly slick football. Real were a threat on the break, as you’d expect with Mbappe and Vinicius Jr. in their team, but Bayern had more clear chances and deservedly took the lead when Luis Diaz finished off a clean, clinical passing move.
There’s a long way to go, and Real have emerged from far greater predicaments in this competition. But Bayern have given them a major problem to solve.
45 min The angle is very tight but Alexander-Arnold hammers the free-kick towards goal. It’s headed away by Kane, back in his own six-yard box.
44 min Vinicius is fouled by Stanisic just outside the area on the left. There’s an argument Vinicius just ran into him, but the free-kick. Vinicius, who is on one, waves an imaginary card at Michael Oliver.
43 min “As a kid, I loved Steve Foster,” writes Steve Foster Tony Hughes. “I think it’s because he looked like a regular guy who couldn’t believe his luck getting to play professional football as his job.
A”lthough he had a bit-part at Espana ‘82, he didn’t look out of place there. Bookended his one season at the Villa with success at Brighton before and Luton Town after.”
It’s been coming since the first whistle. Gnabry lent the ball to Kane 25 yards from goal, got it back and slipped a beautiful pass inside Alexander-Arnold. Diaz timed his out-to-in run immaculately and swept a first-time finish past Lunin from 12 yards.
The move stated with another errant pass from Real, when Vinicius Jr hit the ball against Olise. It deflected off Olise’s elbow – Real wanted a handball – and within five seconds the ball was in the net.
GOAL! Real Madrid 0-1 Bayern (Diaz 41)
Luis Diaz gives Bayern the lead with a fabulous team goal!
39 min Olise controls a sharp pass from Kimmich on the half turn, just outside the area, and plays in the overlapping Stanisic. His dangerous low cross is booted clear at the far post.
36 min Tchouameni is booked for a foul on Olise. It looked a bit harsh, an accidental collision rather than something more cynical, but the yellow card means Tchouameni will miss the second leg.
35 min Vinicius Jr’s slightly selfish shot from 25 yards is comfortably saved by Neuer.
33 min Guler, such a busy and imaginative player, gets to the byline on the left and lifts a cross that takes a deflection and just evades the lunging Valverde (I think).
31 min “Serge Gnabry’s headband game is top notch,” says Peter Oh. We’re talking peak Rafael Nadal-level. Head tennis please!”
Don’t you mean Steve Gnabry?
29min: Fine save by Neuer!
This match is a joy. Valverde eases through midfield and plays an angled through pass to Mbappe, who surges beyond Laimer on the right side of the area and hammers a low shot across goal. Neuer shows terrific reflexes, especially for a 40-year-old, diving low to his right to beat it away.
28 min: Great chance for Gnabry!
Lunin plays a short pass to Pitarch, who tries to give it back to Lunin but instead sets up Gnabry six yards out. His instinctive flick hits Lunin and dribbles wide of the far post. That would have been a risky return pass from Pitarch even if he hadn’t mishit it because Gnabry was so close to Lunin.
Real have lost possession in and around the penalty area at least five times already.
26 min Vinicius’s deflected cross from the left threatens to sneak into the net and is well stopped by the backpedalling Neuer. He then throws the ball straight to Alexander-Arnold, whose fierce shot from the edge of the area is blocked.
25 min Possession percentage: Real 42-56 Bayern. Five shots apiece.
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