5 instances when Real Madrid trailed after the first leg in the Champions League era
The penultimate day for Real Madrid so far this season has arrived. As the league was supposedly lost a long time ago, fans focused on the Champions League and hoped that maybe, just maybe they could cough up their best in Europe’s elite competition and go all the way.
Now, with Barca losing two games in a row in the league, Real Madrid are back in contention as they are just four points adrift with six games to play. However, as they find some ray of hope in La Liga, a bit of darkness has shrouded them in the Champions League.
It seems as though the Madridistas can’t be happy for a long period of time. While still celebrating their Clasico win, they had to taste defeat at the hands of Wolfsburg after a shock 2-0 loss in Germany. Not even Wolfsburg players expected such a result, but such is fate.
However, not all is lost yet. Real Madrid could still win the tie and head to the semi-final—fun fact: Real have only been knocked out once in the three times they were trailing by two goals after the first leg—and a fully functioning team would suffice to make that happen.
Before the match begins, here are 5 instances of what happened when Real Madrid were trailing after the first leg of a knock-out in the Champions League
2006 against Arsenal
This was, like most Real Madrid failures, during their poor period in the Champions League. And this was one those ties where fate, more than anything else, became the biggest force to deny Real Madrid.
Playing the first leg at the Bernabeu, Thierry Henry scored the only goal of the game and Arsenal got the all-important away goal that every visiting team craves more than anything.
In the second leg at Highbury, Real Madrid had numerous opportunities to make a comeback. Within the second minute itself, Ronaldo had a chance to score but was denied by Jens Lehmann. On the hour mark, Real Madrid legend Raul found his brilliant first-time shot hit the post. At that point, Real Madrid fans knew what to expect.
Thierry Henry kept running riot but was denied by a fantastic Iker Casillas. In the dying moments of the game, Robinho’s shot was well saved by Jens Lehmann and Arsenal, despite the odds stacked against them, reached the next round of the competition.
First leg score: Real Madrid 0-1 Arsenal
Aggregate score: Real Madrid 0-1 Arsenal