Bavarian precision at the Santiago Bernabeu (April 8)
It was meant to be a great night for Real Madrid, but Bayern Munich under Vincent Kompany delivered a near-perfect performance. The game was played at a breathless pace from the off. As early as the 24th minute, Harry Kane capitalised on a positional error by Antonio Rudiger and drilled a precise low finish into the corner to put the visitors ahead.
Real hit back before the break — Vinicius Junior surged down the left, laid the ball off to Jude Bellingham, and the Englishman levelled the scores. The stadium erupted, but the joy was short-lived. In the 62nd minute, Jamal Musiala embarrassed the entire Real defence with a dribble in tight space and settled the match at 2:1 to Bayern.
What next?
For the first time in this campaign, Real Madrid looked helpless against such a well-organised defensive unit. The absence of Kylian Mbappe in top form was visible on every counter-attack. Bayern head back from Madrid with a priceless advantage and will be favourites to reach the semi-finals when they host the return leg on April 15 at the Allianz Arena. Can the Galacticos produce another legendary remontada?