RB Leipzig 0: 1 Real Madrid
With Judd Bellingham out due to injury, Brahim Diaz got the chance. And he made great use of that opportunity. With an eye-catching goal, RB Leipzig brought a valuable victory to Real. Real won 1-0 in the first leg of the Champions League final at the Red Bull Arena.
When Real were eagerly waiting for the goal, Diaz gave the team a wonderful goal. In the 48th minute of the match, Diaz cut three Leipzig players with the ball from almost the middle of the field from the right side. After entering the box, he avoided the obstacles of two other defenders and scored a great shot.
Diaz celebrated like Bellingham’s replacement after the goal. And this goal saved Real in the end. Goalkeeper Andri Lunin also has a big achievement in this victory of Real. This goalkeeper saved 9 goals that day. Lunin became the second goalkeeper in the Champions League after 2003-04 to save 9 goals. Earlier, Thibaut Courtois saved 9 goals against Liverpool in the 2022 Champions League final.
Leipzig scored in the second minute of the match at home. However, the goal was disallowed after the VAR test. After a while, they again narrowly missed the goal. Despite not getting a goal, Leipzig kept control of the match at the beginning. However, Real slowly tried to return to the match.
Read also: Real Madrid vs Barcelona
Real did not get a goal despite going close in 9 minutes of the match. However, Real could have fallen behind immediately if the goalkeeper Lunin did not come to the rescue after 10 minutes. After that, both teams made the match by attacking each other. Both were trying to keep the opponent under pressure without moving away from the line of attack.
Real rattled the Leipzig defense with a series of attacks, although they weren’t enough to score. The big problem for Leipzig on the other hand was their finishing weakness. Or they could have scored multiple goals in the beginning. Leipzig even came close in the latter half. But they could not take the last shot properly. In the end, however, neither team could score a goal in the first half.
Even after the break, Leipzig tried to press and play. But in the 49th minute, Diaz’s incredible goal changed the course of the match. Seeing his goal, the commentator himself said, “Lionel Messi would be proud to see this.” Truly, this is a goal reminiscent of Messi.
Lunin’s surprise under the post after a while. Leipzig did not get a goal when he blocked Dani Olmo’s shot. However, the team did not give up despite the goal. They regularly tested Real’s defense in one attack after another. But sometimes they forgot themselves and sometimes they did not get a goal due to the determination of the Real goalkeeper.
Real also went close several times with each attack. But they could not get the second goal either. Even Real’s shot hit the post and came back. In the 81st minute, Benjamin Sesko of Leipzig could not score even after finding the goalkeeper alone. After conceding such a goal, however, it becomes very difficult to win the match. But besides talking about the failure of the hosts, Lunin should also be given credit. He has shown a remarkable performance under the post today. Otherwise, Real could have scored more than one goal today.
In this victory, Real was ahead by 1-0 in the two-leg fight. The two teams will face each other in the second leg at Real’s ground on March 7.
