This time, not even the weight of the shirt helped Real Madrid. In a new departure of low offensive inspiration, the Spanish team was far from winning Arsenal on Wednesday (16) for the minimum difference of three goals to match the quarterfinals of Championship and drag the definition of the semifinals for extension.
Worse than that: at home, the Spanish team was again defeated, 2-1. All goals came out in the second half: Saka opened the scoring, Vinicius Junior drew and Martinelli, in additions, gave the English victory.
Accustomed to often unlikely in the competition, Real Madrid paid the price for the weak game they played in England, in the first leg, when Arsenal’s 3-0 win was little for the offensive volume of the English. Even with the defeat, goalkeeper Courtois was still one of the best on the field.
Shirt 1 appeared well again before his fans. Still in the first half, in the 12th minute, he defended a penalty charged by Saka, which could make the Madrid mission even more difficult.
A few minutes later, Mbappé tried to dig a penalty for the home owners, but the referee had to nullify his field marking after VAR indicated an impediment in the play. The first stage boiled down in these bids.
It was better for Arsenal, who kept his peaceful advantage and walked to return to the final semifinal of the main club tournament in Europe after 16 years. The last time the club advanced to the penultimate phase of the competition was in the 2008/09 edition, when it was eliminated by Manchester United, who would become the runner-up, surpassed by Barcelona.
In this edition, the next opponent of the London team will be Paris Saint-Germain-two dream of the unprecedented achievement of the most coveted Cup in Europe. In the other key, Barça will face Inter Milan, which eliminated Bayern Munich also on Wednesday.
The arsenal is packed to the competition sequence. In Madrid, after the break, when Real was only 45 minutes to do what he failed over three times, Saka managed to redeem himself and opened the scoring at 20, with a beautiful touch over Courtois.
Only after this coup did Carlo Ancelotti’s team have some reaction. Two minutes later, Vinicius Junior tied the match, leaving the household 4-1. It was the 105th goal of shirt 7 by the team of Madrid, making him the Brazilian with the most goals for the club, taking off Ronaldo, who scored 104.
The brand, however, will be marked by the disqualification of the current champions of the Champions League, in a season that has frustrated the fans and pressured coach Carlo Anchelotti.
The team is second in the Spanish Championship, four points from leader Barcelona, leaving seven rounds to the end of the tournament. And will also face Arquirrival in the decision of the King Cup on the 26th.
On the eve of the second confrontation with Arsenal, when asked about the weight of a possible disqualification in his stay in the club, Ancelotti bet on his continuity at the head of the team.
“I believe I don’t [serei demitido]”, He replied, without extending in the comment. Last weekend, the question had already been taken to the coach on the eve of the confrontation with Alavés, by the Spaniard. At the time, he said he would talk about his future only” at the end of the season “, recalled that he has another year of contract and said that the club has always supported him,” especially in times of difficulty. “
The Spanish press, however, has reported in recent days that his permanence in office depends on the results in the final stretch of the season, especially a difficult reaction in Spanish, as well as overcoming his biggest rival in the king’s Cup decision – managed in national competitions, Barcelona has advanced to the Championship semifinal and dreams of the triple crown.
The CBF (Brazilian Football Confederation), the distance, observes the situation of Ancelotti in Real. President Ednaldo Rodrigues has not yet defined a commander for the Brazilian team after Dorival Júnior’s resignation and does not hide his admiration for the Italian.
The coach’s contract with Real goes to the middle of 2026, but the pressure after falling in Champions can abbreviate the commander’s relationship with the Spanish team.
