Santiago Bernabeu: A Ground Of Miracle That Needs More Than Miracle To Maintain Prestige
Aside the multi billion pounds spent to make Real Madrid home ground Santiago Bernabeu one of the best in the world, the ground has witnessed a lot of epics in the UEFA Champions League that makes opponent crumble. However, this season alone the ground has seen some crazy results such as Lille winning on the ground, Barcelona humiliating Madrid on their turf. Just last week, Lowly Valencia won on the ground, their first in 17 years.
The ground will again be under great spotlight when Arsenal visit next week to conclude their quarterfinal journey with a three goal advantage. Arsenal delivered one of the most stunning European displays in their history Tuesday to beat Real Madrid 3-0 at Emirates Stadium and take firm control of this Champions League quarterfinal tie.
Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois produced a string of magical saves but could do nothing as Declan Rice scored two devastating second-half free kicks before Mikel Merino added a third.
Rice had never scored a direct free kick in his career but after a goalless first half, he did so twice in the space of 12 minutes as Madrid were made to pay for wasting a series of earlier openings with Kylian Mbappé the biggest culprit.
Rice’s 58th-minute opener from nearly 32 yards beat Real’s four-man wall before his second found the top corner with unerring accuracy. Merino’s smart first-time finish five minutes later put the home side in dreamland and Real were unable to muster a response.
A wretched evening for Madrid got even worse in stoppage time as Eduardo Camavinga was sent off after picking up a second yellow card for dissent.
The Gunners have not reached the Champions League semifinals since 2009, but Real Madrid — the defending champions — now face a mammoth task to overturn this deficit in next Wednesday’s second leg after a night that will live long in the memory for those in the red half of north London, th billion dollar question will be will Madrid turn around the result at the Santiago Bernabeu?
“One place where crazy things happen is our house”.
That was Jude Bellingham’s warning to Arsenal’s players after his Real Madrid team were beaten 3-0 by the Gunners in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.
Yes, crazy things happen at the Santiago Bernabeu but stats are now in Madrid’s favour this time, while the Los Blancos have won 15 European crowns more any other side in the competition’s history, they have however failed to progress after suffering a third goal deficit in the first leg.
Madrid’s loss on Tuesday was the club’s joint-heaviest defeat in a Champions League knockout match and after the full-time whistle Bellingham said his side were “nowhere near it”.
Real Madrid have now lost five games in the competition this season, a tally that equals a club record.
And Arsenal’s victory was the 12th time an English side have won by three or more goals in the first leg of a Champions League knockout stage tie, and every time the English side has gone through to the next round.
Real Madrid have been here before. The last decade is littered with dramatic, second-leg comebacks at the Santiago Bernabéu, building on the club’s long history — sometimes overplayed — of European drama.
In 2016, they lost 2-0 at Wolfsburg in the Champions League quarterfinals. They won the second leg 3-0 at the Bernabéu. In the 2022 knockout stage, on their most famous run yet, they lost 1-0 at Paris Saint-Germain, only to win the second leg 3-1. They later lost 4-3 at Manchester City, and went on to go through 6-5 on aggregate.
But none of those first-leg defeats felt quite like this. Overturning a 3-0 deficit is another order of magnitude entirely. And this was no freak result: Madrid, barring the Man City playoff, have not been playing well all season.
In big games they have struggled, humbled twice by Barcelona in El Clásico, and again Tuesday. Can they do it? At the Bernabéu, you’d never rule out anything. An early Madrid goal in the second leg could rattle an Arsenal who are inexperienced at this level, and with the crowd behind Madrid, and so much star power in the forward line, you never know.
But there is now no margin for error. “At the Bernabéu, anything can happen,” Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti said last week after a 4-4 draw with Real Sociedad put Madrid into the cup final. If Madrid are to reach the Champions League semis, that statement will be tested to the limit.
