The Champions League action is slowly gaining momentum as teams seek consistent victories to solidify their group rankings and qualify for the knockout stages. From the latest action, Real Madrid scored a dominating 3-0 win over Braga in their Group C encounter on Thursday, thus cementing their spot at the top of the group.
Brahim Diaz opened the score for Real Madrid in the first half, which was later followed up by second-half goals by Vinicius Junior, and Rodrygo that helped the team win their fourth league game on the trot. The victory at Santiago Bernabéu Stadium also made Real the first team to qualify for the Champions League knockouts.
The opening goal of the match came for Real Madrid in the 27th minute when Diaz converted a sweet spot created following a sublime assist by Rodrygo. Diaz got on the end of Rodrygo’s cutback and fired into the roof of the net to open the scoring. Real Madrid ended the first half with a 1-0 lead over the visitors.
The second half began with Real Madrid again maintaining the dominance, passing through the gaps and maintaining maximum possession. 13 minutes into the second half, Vinicius Jr. slotted the ball into the nets after skipping past the Braga defense after Vazquez set him up for a spot to fire the ball into the bottom corner past goalkeeper Matheus. At 58 minutes, Real were cruising comfortably at 2-0.
Braga did have some promising chances to level up their game against the home side. They had the chance to go ahead in the first half when they were awarded a penalty spot after Lucas Vazquez fouled Cristian Borja in the area. However, Alvaro Djalo’s shot was saved by goalkeeper Andriy Lunin.
Vinicius maintained his spectacular form as after scoring one himself, he created the platform for the third goal for Madrid in the 61st minute, when he sent in a sublime cross to Rodrygo, who dinked the ball over the onrushing goalkeeper Matheus. With three goals up their sleeves, the Spanish side were now perfectly positioned for a comfortable win at home.
The victory allowed Real Madrid to become the first team to qualify for the Champions League knockout stage, advancing to the Top 16 for the 26th consecutive season. With four straight wins, Real Madrid is not placed comfortably on top of the Group C standings with 12 points, followed by Napoli with 7 points. Braga will have to tie up their boots and get back into winning ways as they are still placed at the third spot with just 3 points from the four games they have played so far.
