Champions League 2018/19: Real Madrid star admits that they have lost the “Illusion” of being “Real” Madrid
What is the story?
Real Madrid winger Lucas Vázquez congratulated Ajax after a humiliating loss in the Champions League round of sixteen tie. In an interview after the game he confessed:
"We've had three bad games and lost the illusion of Real Madrid. We come from winning three years in a row to losing like this. What we achieved was incredible, but this season hasn't gone as expected. It's an exaggeration to talk about a change of cycle, but we can't explain what happened in this past week."
Real Madrid suffered an embarrassing 1-4 defeat against the Dutch side at their own backyard. This was their 4th defeat in a row at the Santiago Bernabéu. In the last four home games they have conceded as many as 10 goals and scored only twice.
The 13-time champions came into this second leg with a one goal advantage after their controversial win in the first leg. Ajax started the game on the front foot and scored twice inside the opening 20 minutes. Real had to make two substitution inside the first half after Lucas Vázquez and Vinícius Júnior both went off due to injuries.
In the second half Real Madrid came out positively but Ajax went 3-0 up after Dušan Tadić’s 62nd minute stunner. Real pulled one back through Marco Asensio but the killer blow came from Lasse Schöne’s curling free kick in the 72nd minute.
Ajax were a better side throughout in the both legs and dominated Madrid in every aspect. The way they played in the Bernabéu is truly incredible and the credits must be given to their manager, Erik ten Hag. The way he marshalled his troops, was remarkable.
What’s Next?
After going out from two competitions in a span of one week, Real will have an uphill task in La Liga where they are 12 points behind the leaders, Barcelona. Real Madrid will play Real Valladolid next in La Liga on Sunday.