Carlo Ancelotti's side relied on two moments of individual quality to come away with a narrow first-leg victory in their last-16 tie
Real Madrid pulled of an act of Champions League magic, with Brahim Diaz providing the decisive moment in their 2-1 last-16 first-leg win over Atletico Madrid. Los Blancos were outplayed for long stretches, but wonderful strikes from Rodrygo and Brahim gave them a slim advantage heading into the second leg.
Rodrygo opened the scoring inside four minutes, as the Brazilian ran onto Federico Valverde's pass before cutting onto his weaker left foot and arrowing a shot into the far corner. Atletico were very much in the game, though, and having consistently threatened on the break, they were good value for their equaliser as Julian Alvarez rode a challenge before whipping a wonderful curled effort past Thibaut Courtois.
Los Blancos responded in the second half, despite having less of the ball, and Brahim provided the crucial moment with a fine piece of skill and angled finish inside the box to retake the lead on 55 minutes. Atleti probed for a way back into the game, and Antoine Griezmann drew a neat save out of Thibaut Courtois. But a goal didn't come, and Atleti decided, instead, to sit on the scoreline as Griezmann was replaced after 70 minutes.
Real, for their part, were unable to create any further openings, though a last-second intervention from Marcos Llorente prevented a tap-in for Vinicius Jr and set up what looks likely to be an intriguing return leg next week.
GOAL rates Real Madrid's players from Santiago Bernabeu…
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Thibaut Courtois (6/10):
Offered nothing more than a courtesy dive for Alvarez's goal. Came up with a nice save to deny Griezmann.
Federico Valverde (8/10):
Absolutely immense at the back. Assisted the opener, denied a certain goal in the first half, and put in some key tackles in the second.
Raul Asencio (6/10):
Got away with a pretty clear foul when Alvarez burst through, but was otherwise tidy.
Antonio Rudiger (6/10):
Didn't have much to do in terms of one-on-ones. Made a few fun forward runs.
Ferland Mendy (6/10):
Tidy at the back. Made a couple of interesting forays forward.
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Aurelien Tchouameni (6/10):
Mixed, all said. Pulled apart with Camavinga, but much more comfortable in a sitting role. Completed passes at a high clip – even if most of them were sideways.
Eduardo Camavinga (5/10):
Skinned in the run up to Atleti's equaliser. Didn't progress the ball well enough, either.
Brahim Diaz (8/10):
A fine mix of scrappy and precise in the Jude Bellingham role. Scored a wonderful goal in arguably his best showing for Los Blancos.
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Rodrygo (7/10):
Brilliant in the early goings. Scored a wonderful goal, might have won a penalty, and gave his marker the runaround. Quieter after that, but put in some reliable defensive work – as per.
Kylian Mbappe (4/10):
Quiet on the biggest of stages. Lost his positional discipline and dropped far too deep.
Vinicius Jr (6/10):
Didn't show up until midway through the second half, when he caused some real problems.
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Luka Modric (5/10):
Not much of an impact as Atleti pretty much crowded him out of the game.
Lucas Vazquez (N/A):
Late legs for Valverde.
Endrick (N/A):
No time to make an impact.
Carlo Ancelotti (6/10):
Somewhat surprising that he left Modric out, and his side didn't exactly turn in a masterful display. But he will take the narrow lead – even if the performance needs to be better next week.
