The look of fascination of the young star Kylian Mbappé when stepping onto the grass of the New Bernabéu made headlines around the world in the preview of the duel between his current club, Paris Saint Germain, and Real Madrid, for the round of 16 of the League of European Champions.
But the French attacker’s fascination must have increased even more, not because of the venue, but because of the white team, which turned around a 0-2 and eliminated PSG from the Champions League, despite an excellent performance from the start. personal point of view.
Mbappé had shouldered the tie until his compatriot and friend Karim Benzema appeared, who invented an incredible steal from the rival goalkeeper to score Madrid’s first goal at the crossroads.
It was the prize for the harassment to which the eleven meringue subjected their opponent from minute 1, led by Benzema himself, who never stopped believing in the comeback, and from then on everything clicked: the shark smelled blood and the Parisians they bailed…once again.
It did not matter that their line-up was full of stars, from Messi to Neymar, they were all portrayed again, suffering a comeback that has become usual for those from the City of Light in the main tournament for clubs on the Old Continent.
The first head that will roll will be that of coach Mauricio Pochettino, who does not seem to make all the important decisions in the squad, but is the visible face. From before it was speculated that he would not continue the next campaign, and with this blow he signs his death sentence.
A blow also to the wallet project that the Qatari owners try to apply since they took over the management of the campus a few years ago.
On the opposite bench, Carlo Ancelotti corrected the mistakes made in his starting lineup by substituting an ineffective and too nervous (as usual when he is not a substitute) Marco Asencio, and a Toni Kroos who was diminished after suffering an injury recently . The heart that Rodrigo and Camavinga put into their positions had a lot to do with the final result, which could have been even larger in favor of the whites.
I also highlight above all the heroism of Eder Militao. The Brazilian central defender was physically handicapped throughout the match due to frequent clashes with his opponents and it seemed that he would be substituted, but he stayed on the pitch and was a fencer at the back.
And what about the eternal Luka Modric? The race that was spent shortly after the end to take a ball from Messi is the perfect image of his performance, full of dedication and energy, despite his 36 years.
But in general, what was seen again is that a conglomerate of stars does not guarantee titles if they do not come together as a true team, as Real was this time despite suffering the significant casualties of Casimiro and Mendy. From the stands, player 12 was also fundamental, because the fans always hoped to reverse the disadvantage.
If in the summer what sounded the most was ¡Esto es París!, with the arrival of its megastars, now ¡Esto es Madrid!
In the rest of the crosses this week there were no surprises, and the only one that seemed open ended with nothing less than a resounding win for Bayern Munich, which relaunches its favoritism in the Champions League.
