Vinicius ran over Liverpool, Real scored thee times against the Reds

Maybe Real Madrid wants to buy Erling Haaland or Kylian Mbappe, but even if they fail to do so, they don’t need to worry, they have Vinicius Jr.! The 20-year old Brazilian had Mbappe display-like display in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinal match against Liverpool and scored two goals, and with a help from Asensao, the Royal club will go to England for a rematch with a good result: Real – Liverpool 3-1.

Maybe Real Madrid has problems playing against the likes of Elche, Valladolid and Levante in La Liga, but against Liverpool, they looked like a Champions League contender. Liverpool have lost each of their last three games against Real Madrid, and tonight they added their fourth one, and rightfully so. Looking at Liverpool’s display on Tuesday, they didn’t deserve that lone goal, which can potentially save them in the return match. It wasn’t a Liverpool team which won comfortable against Arsenal, it was a Liverpool team which lost to Burnley, Fulham and Brighton.

Jota has been in such a fantastic form lately (for both Liverpool and Portugal) that Klopp “sacrificed” Roberto Firmino for this match, while the surprise addition has been Nabu Keita, who went into the starting 11 instead of Thiago. Real had problems in defense, due to the injuries to Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane (Covid-19), but it didn’t matter against Liverpool, because the Reds had 0 shots in the first half! Klopp’s team was overrun by Real, which knew that Alexander-Arnold is in horrible form, so most of the attacks came from the left side and Vinicius Jr., who was the best playing in the first half.

After a clear domination, Real managed to score two goals. First came after a genius Toni Kross pass from his own half to Vinicius, who was precise for 1-0 in the 27th minute. And after only 9 minutes, Alexander-Arnold made a terrible clearance, and Asensio was there for the second goal.

Things were so bad for Liverpool that Klopp decided to substitute Keita in the 41st minute. 

But, his decision to start with Jota proved to be a good one, since he started the first Liverpool action in the second half, and their maiden shot was good enough for the goal. Jota's shot was blocked by Modric, but the ball fell rather luckily straight to Salah, who finished with ease.

Still, Liverpool didn’t continue the way they should after a vital away goal, so after 15 minutes of insecurity, Real continued with a first half display which resulted with another goal from Vinicius.

After that, Zidane decided to secure the result first and foremost, and then try to score the fourth one, if possible. In the end, 3-1 was the final result, and Liverpool should be happy. The away goal can be a gift in disguise for Liverpool, but only if the Reds significantly improve their display in the return match.

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE - LAST 8

Tuesday

Manchester City - Borussia Dortmund 2-1 (1-0)

/De Bruyne 19, Foden 90 – Reus 84/

Real Madrid – Liverpool 3-1 (2-0)

/Vinicius Jr. 27, 65, Asensio 36 – Salah 51/

Wednesday

22.00: Bayern Munich - PSG

22.00: Porto - Chelsea