RB Leipzig picked up a memorable win over Spanish giants Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday.
Goals from Christopher Nkunku, Josko Gvardiol and Timo Werner sealed a morale boosting win for RB Leipzig over Real Madrid. The win leaves Leipzig second in their group with nine points from four outings. Meanwhile, Los Blancos remain top with ten points. Shakhtar Donetsk are third with six points.
Gvardiol handed the home side a dream start with a goal in the 13th minute. And Leipzig doubled their advantage five minutes later through Nkunku. Werner wrapped up the scoring in the second half.
Real Madrid got back into the game close to half-time, when Vinicius Junior scored. Rodrygo scored a consolation in injury time from the penalty spot. Real Madrid will thus have to wait for the final matchday to clinch the top spot in Group F. Here at The Hard Tackle, we look at how the Real Madrid players fared on the night.
👔 @MrAncelotti: "You learn more from one loss than from 10 wins in a row."#UCL pic.twitter.com/2GBAoDz31x
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) October 25, 2022
Thibaut Courtois: 5.5/10
The Belgian international will be disappointed to have conceded three goals, but it was hardly his fault. Real Madrid were open at the back and were duly punished. Courtois did well to stop the effort that led to the opening goal initially, but he was powerless to stop the rebound from going in.
🎙️ @thibautcourtois "We weren't in the match."#UCL pic.twitter.com/ymylMuCCuF
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) October 25, 2022
Lucas Vazquez: 4/10
The Spaniard started in place of Dani Carvajal and dropped a poor performance. Vazquez struggled to cope with RB Leipzig’s directness and intensity. He was quite mediocre going forward as well and failed to provide his team with an attacking outlet.
Eder Militao: 4/10
An uncharacteristic performance from the Brazilian defender. Usually a reliable presence at the back, Militao seemed nervous and struggled to cope with the relentless pressing from the home side. He was poor with his distribution as well.
Nacho: 5/10
Nacho initially started as a centre-back but later switched out wide. The Spaniard struggled defensively and was not effective going forward either.
Antonio Rudiger: 7/10
Rudiger had a rough start as a full-back, and Ancelotti drafted him into his natural role soon after. The German international was then Real Madrid’s best defender on the night and produced vital interceptions and blocks to keep the score respectable for the visitors.
Aurelien Tchouameni: 6.5/10
Tchouameni was partly at fault for the second goal of the game, but he improved as the game went on. He looked solid defensively and protected his centre-backs while recycling the possession well.
Toni Kroos: 6.5/10
Kroos was the main creator for his side from the deep and did his job well. He was calm and composed on the ball. Kroos produced a number of top class long balls to beat the Leipzig press. But the Real Madrid attackers could not make the most of his service.
Marco Asensio: 5.5/10
Overall, it was poor outing from the attacking midfielder, but he did well to create the goal for Vinicius. Asensio struggled to link up with the attackers and add some creativity in the final third for his side.
Eduardo Camavinga: 6/10
A subdued performance from the young Frenchman. Camavinga tried to break the lines with his passing, but he was let down by his teammates. He failed to assert his control in the middle of the park.
Vinicius Junior: 6.5/10
Vinicius Junior, the player to watch in our preview, scored the opening goal of the game for Real Madrid and worked tirelessly off the ball. He missed an important chance in the second half and will be disappointed, given the kind of form he is in.
⚽️👈 Comeback? That way!@vinijr | #UCL pic.twitter.com/pQwRP3wpuq
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) October 25, 2022
Rodrygo Goes: 6/10
Rodrygo earned a consolation penalty in the end and scored from it. The Brazilian worked hard in the final third but did not have too much service.
SUBSTITUTES
David Alaba: 5/10
The experienced Real Madrid defender made a mistake for the third goal. He was caught out of position, and Werner took advantage of the situation and hit home.
Eden Hazard: 5.5/10
Hazard had a chance to score from an Asensio cut-back. He linked up well in the attack after coming on.
Dani Carvajal: 5/10
Carvajal was brought on to add defensive quality as Vazquez struggled. The Spanish international was expected to add something going forward as well, but he barely made an impact.
