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With a victory in the anniversary match in the next round: Toni Kroos reached the quarter-finals in his 100th Champions League match with Real Madrid from the start. The 2014 world champion and the champions of Spain won the second leg of the round of 16 against Atalanta Bergamo 3-1 (1-0) and returned to the top eight for the first time since 2018 (the highlight! in the video!) .
Real had already won the first leg against the Italian club around German national player Robin Gosens 1-0. Madrid forward Karim Benzema (34th) scored the first goal on Tuesday.
This was preceded by a big mistake from Bergamos Marco Sportiello: Luka Modric intercepted an attempt from the goalkeeper, played on Benzema and the Frenchman converted effortlessly. Captain Sergio Ramos (60th) increased with a penalty. Luis Muriel (83.) cut for Bergamo, who shortly after conceded the third goal by Marcos Asensio (85.).
“I congratulated the players, we had a great game from start to finish, against a team that physically demands everything from you,” said Real coach Zidane. “We were there from the beginning, and then he was better with the ball. It was a complete performance. He was very happy with the moves on offense. If you take a chance later, it’s perfect.”
The guests could have gone ahead after three minutes: Gosens’s shot from a few meters was too central, so Thibaut Courtois was able to stop the shot. Atalanta remained brave, but did not reward herself for her initiation of research.
Real got better control of the game, with Kroos assuming the usual central role of distributing the ball. The 31-year-old is the fourth German to break the 100 mark out of eleven in the premier class. Ahead of him in this ranking are national goalkeepers Manuel Neuer (117), Philipp Lahm (110) and Oliver Kahn (103).
Overall, the much greater Madrid experience took its toll on Tuesday night. With the very confident Kroos and Modric at the venue, the royal team remained calm and an overview even in pressure situations. They also used needles in their counterattacks. Vinicius Junior (52nd) should have made it 2-0, but after a great solo he forgave him miserably. In Bergamo, Gosens (57th) had to leave the field.
Josip Ilicic, who replaced the German, made a serious mistake shortly after. His bad pass ended Vinicius Junior, whom Rafael Toloi could only stop with a foul. Long-injured Captain Ramos did not miss the opportunity.
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