Zidane ‘angry’ after Real capitulation
CAUGHT NAPPING Real Madrid manager faults team for allowing Borussia Dortmund mount a late comeback to draw their Group F encounter
MADRID:Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane criticised his players for switching off against Borussia Dortmund and throwing away a two-goal lead that cost the European champions top place in Champions League Group F on Wednesday.
Just as in Dortmund in September, Real conceded a late goal to draw 2-2 with Thomas Tuchel’s side, although they still equalled a club record 34-game unbeaten run in all competitions.
Karim Benzema scored in each half to put Real in a comfortable position to win the group, but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang responded and Marco Reus levelled in the 88th minute.
“When you see how the second half went you get a bit angry. We had the game in our hands but this is football. You need to carry on right until the end,” Zidane told a news conference.
“We created a lot of chances to score the third goal. Instead, we allowed Dortmund back into the game. Dortmund deserved first place. They demonstrated how strong they are.”
Real failed to finish top of their group for the first time since 2012-13, when they also came second to Dortmund.
Finishing second could yet prove to be a blessing for Real, who will avoid fellow runners-up Bayern Munich and Paris St Germain as well as fellow Spaniards Atletico Madrid and Barcelona, but could meet Zidane’s former side Juventus.
“I haven’t thought about the draw, I wanted us to finish top and we did everything to do that but I’m not going to keep going over it. We’ll see who we get on Monday,” the coach said.
“I don’t want to get Juventus for two reasons, but there’s nothing we can do about that.”
The coach praised Benzema for becoming the sixth player to score 50 Champions League 50 goals and paid tribute to his players for matching Leo Beenhakker’s side’s run of 34 games without defeat in 1989-90.
“For any player it’s important to score and I’m very happy with Benzema, his goals, his work and the team’s work. He’s happy and we’re happy with him and the run goes on,” Zidane said.
Dortmund may not boast of superstars in their ranks, they definitely have young and energetic set of players who never give up.
spirit was on display once again on Wednesday night as they did not lose heart with Real going 2-0 up and mounted a comeback to hold the Spanish giants. In the process, they topped the group and also became the team to score most goals in the Champions League group stage. Zinedine Zidane was furious with the way Real let go of a two-goal advantage, he would be happy with the fact that he won’t have to face the likes of Bayern Munich, Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain in the last 16. last 16 opponents will be Arsenal, Napoli, Leicester, Monaco or Juventus. Of them, Zidane said during the post-match press conference that he would like to avoid Juve in the knockouts. this season hasn’t been ideal for Karim Benzema. Maybe he was still recovering from the blow of missing the Euro 2016 finals on home turf after France coach Didier Deschamps excluded him for non-footballing reasons. front, the local media had put him under lot of pressure coming into the match. But the forward responded in emphatic manner. goals showed his predatory instincts as he found himself in the right position at the right time to bring up his half-century in the competition.
Arsenal, Napoli, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Monaco, Borussia Dortmund, Leicester City and Juventus. They will play their 1st leg match away.
PSG, Benfica, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen, Real Madrid, Porto and Sevilla. The will play the first leg at home.
The teams that finished third — Ludogorets, Besiktas, Borussia Monchengladbach, FC Rostov, Tottenham, Legia Warsaw, FC Copenhagen and Lyon.
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