Real Madrid and stunning comebacks seem to have become synonyms in the Champions League.
The Los Blancos came back from the brink against both Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Chelsea earlier this year. And on Wednesday, Carlo Ancelotti’s men staged yet another fightback, rallying from a position of near defeat to beat Man City at home.
Real Madrid stars were in high spirits after their miraculous escape in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League semifinal against Manchester City at the Santiago Bernabeu, as they celebrated the triumph in the dressing room by showing off their dance moves.
Leading the pack on the dance floor were Brazilian forward Vinicius Junior and his countryman Eder Militao with Frenchman Ferland Mendy also joining them in the celebrations as the music blared from the loudspeakers inside the change room.
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— Real Madrid C.F. ???????????????? (@realmadriden) May 4, 2022
Meanwhile, the likes of Karim Benzema and Toni Kroos celebrated their side’s victory on social media, with the German using an explicit phrase to describe the team on Instagram.
“This team is a f***ing joke,” Kroos wrote in his post on the popular photo-sharing network.
On the other hand, Benzema declared that he was “proud” of his colleagues.
A night full of emotions… Very proud of this ???????????????? and the ???????????????????????????????????????????? ¡ Hasta el final ! GRACIAS ???? ???????????? ???????????? ???????? ???????????????????????? ???????????? ???????????? ???????????????????? ! ???????????? #Nueve #HalaMadrid #UCL #aporla14 #Alhamdulilah ????????❤️ pic.twitter.com/68CNRITjwh
— Karim Benzema (@Benzema) May 4, 2022
The reactions of Real’s players came after the Spanish giants accomplished the unthinkable in Madrid.
Benzema and company entered the match on the backfoot, having lost the first leg at the Etihad 4-3 and found themselves on the cusp of defeat with Pep Guardiola’s boys doubling their advantage with the help of Rihad Mahrez’s strike in the 73rd minute.
With tensions escalating on the pitch, the hosts were staring down the barrel after 89 minutes of play. After all, City led 5-3 on aggregate at that stage.
But then came a seven-minute magical spell of genius from Rodrygo and Benzema as the duo left City shell-shocked with their mind blowing display of attacking football.
It was the Brazil winger who started Real’s unimaginable resistance as he came up with a stunning brace in back-to-back minutes with his first goal coming in the 90th followed by another strike in the 91st.
Rodrygo’s second goal put the fixture back on an even keel as the scores got tied at 5-5, the match moved into extra-time where it was Benzema who came to Real’s rescue.
The France striker made no mistake in delivering his 95th minute penalty to end Guardiola’s dream of winning the continental title with City this year.
Guardiola, regarded as one of the greatest tacticians in football, has never tasted European success with City.
In contrast, the Catalan has guided them to multiple titles in the Premier League and is on the cusp of lifting another one later this month but his bad luck in the Champions League still continues.
