As Real Madrid came from behind to beat Paris Saint-Germain 3-1 in a an end-to-end UEFA Champions League encounter at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday night, there were bound to be plenty of talking points.
Adrien Rabiot put the visitors ahead, arguably against the run of play, but Cristiano Ronaldo would level proceedings with a penalty on the stroke of half-time to swing the momentum in the favour of the hosts.
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Real’s talisman would add to his tally late on and fullback Marcelo would chip in with an important goal as well to give Los Blancos a definitive advantage heading into their second-leg of their round-of-16 clash with Les Parisiens and The Statesman has highlighted the five talking points from the epic tie for you:
Cristiano Ronaldo vs Neymar: CR7’s still got it
It was billed as the clash between the king and the prince, with the Ballon d’Or potentially on the line but the old dog showed he’s not quite throwing in the towel with yet another ‘big’ performance.
Yes, Neymar’s dribbling skills lit up the Bernabeu, but what did he have to show for it at full-time?
A yellow card for his troubles and a chastening defeat at the hands of a side and a player that are supposedly on the wane.
Well thank god for small mercies that Los Blancos and Ronaldo weren’t at their best for had the Portuguese been slightly more clinical, his goals tally could easily have been doubled.
Still, a brace in a tie against such a high-profile team such as PSG is nothing to be scoffed at and it can safely be said that Round 1 goes to Cristiano Ronaldo by unanimous decision.
Zinedine Zidane’s inspired substitution gives him stay of execution
Considering Florentino Perez’s infamously-itchy trigger finger, it wouldn’t have been a stretch to predict a home loss at the hands of the new boys on the block would have seen the Zidane get the boot.
And trailing 1-0 shortly after the half-hour mark, the usually-unflappable Frenchman was clearly feeling the heat.
Ronaldo cooly dispatched a penalty to equalise right before half-time but the job was not done yet and Zidane clearly got one of his three substitutions right to win a massive game.
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Why the emphasis on the sole change when Zidane made three as he sought to throw the kitchen sink at PSG?
For the first introduction—Gareth Bale— didn’t did an awful lot despite being on the pitch for over twenty minutes.
And it was Marco Asensio who would do the damage, effectively racking up two assists in a sensational 11-minute cameo to save, not for the first time, Zidane and Real’s bacon.
Asensio has been knocking on the door at Real for a while now and if he keeps changing the complexion of games with superb cameos such as these, clamours for him to start will start to reach deafening decibels.
Edinson Cavani and Karim Benzema: No.9’s disappoint yet again
Much has been made of Real’s misfiring BBC (Bale, Benzema, Cristiano) with CR7 carrying the side for most parts this season but on Wednesday, PSG’s MCN (Mbappe, Cavani and Neymar) didn’t really shine either.
While Mbappe was the architect of the opener, Neymar was bright throughout and caused Real’s backline plenty of problems with his pace and mazy dribbling skills but Cavani put in an truly anonymous shift and it wasn’t a surprise to see him hauled off early on in the second-half.
Not the ideal way to bring in your 31st birthday, for PSG’s No.9 has had better games for sure.
On the other end, Benzema’s poor goalscoring form continued as the Frenchman toiled with scant reward, with Real arguably really getting going only when he was replaced.
Zidane prefers his compatriot to the likes of Asensio or even Bale at times due to his work-rate but a forward needs to score goals and on days when Ronaldo goes missing, can Real’s No.9 really pick up the slack?
At his age, it’s difficult to argue his case and Los Blancos may be better off without the Frenchman in the starting XI as the business end of the season nears.
The Toni Kroos and Sergio Ramos penalty incidents
There were two penalty incidents in the game, with both going Real Madrid’s way.
The first was when Toni Kroos was brought down by PSG midfielder Giovani Lo Celso in the box. Match referee Gianluca Rocchi had a clear view of the ‘foul’ and pointed to the spot, with Ronaldo promptly dispatching the ensuing spot-kick.
Television replays suggested that while there was clear contact as Celso grabbed Kroos’ neck, it seemed like the German made the most of it and went to ground a little too easily.
PSG would have a strong penalty shout of their own waved away in the second-half as Adrien Rabiot’s goal-bound shot clearly struck Sergio Ramos on the arm.
The Real Madrid skipper suggested that his arms were close to his body and he couldn’t have gotten out of the way but the fact remained that Les Parisiens were denied a goalscoring opportunity and on another day, could well have had a penalty.
Two contentious decisions, which arguably changed the complexion of the tie and could easily have gone the other way but one side will definitely be feeling more aggrieved than the other and you can expect Unai Emery to raise the issue in his post-match presser.
Les Parisiens up against it now
Two goal leads have been overturned in the past, with PSG on the wrong end of a dramatic tie against Spanish opposition barely a year ago.
Barcelona’s famous comeback against them will serve to inspire Les Parisiens on March 6 as they seek to overhaul the deficit against La Blaugrana’s arch-rivals.
However, the vast experience in this Real Madrid side makes them highly unlikely to lose by a two-goal margin without at least scoring one in reply.
Edinson Cavani, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe possess plenty of goals, but so do Real Madrid and a 2-0 result in favour of the Ligue 1 giants is difficult to envisage at this moment.
This is the UEFA Champions League and remarkable comebacks are almost commonplace but it seems like a bridge too far for Unai Emery’s men.
Had Marcelo not scored the third goal, PSG would definitely still have been in the tie but overturning a two-goal deficit is unlikely as we are talking about a side that have won the competition two years in a row now.