Real Madrid played Atalanta at home for a spot in the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal. Karim Benzema scored his 6th goal in 5 games in all competitions for Real Madrid. Marco Asensio and Sergio Ramos also got on the scoresheet.
Madrid was up 1-0 on-aggregate from the first leg played in Italy. After the Italian side missed a few chances early on in the second leg, Benzema gave Real Madrid the lead in the 34th minute. In the 60th minute of the game, Rafael Toloi fouled Vinicius JR in the box and Real Madrid was awarded a penalty. Captain Sergio Ramos powered the ball past Sportiello for the second of the night. Atalanta’s Muriel bent in his freekick in the 83rd minute, but Real Madrid’s two-goal cushion was restored in the next minute, when substitute Marco Asensio found the back of the net after receiving a pass from Lucas Vazquez.
This match also created some astounding records. Manager Zinedine Zidane has now won 30 out of 49 Champions League matches; only Josef Heynckes (42) and Pep Guardiola (48) won 30 games in fewer matches than the Frenchman. Karim Benzema’s night opener was his 70th Champions League goal, which propelled him to fifth place on the top scorer list of the competition. Lastly, after converting the penalty, Sergio Ramos only needs one more goal to reach Roberto Carlos’ record (16) of most goals scored by a defender in the Champions League.
The UEFA draw took place on Friday, and Real Madrid will face Liverpool in the quarter final of the competition.
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