Real Madrid successfully completed the last 16 of the 2023-2024 Champions League with a sweet harvest. A 1-1 draw (2-1 aggregate) against RB Leipzig in the second leg which took place at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu on Thursday (7/3/2024) was enough to bring El Real to the quarter-finals.
Even though today’s positive results were achieved, it did not bring satisfaction to Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos. This German midfielder assessed that the game presented was different from the final result. “In the first half, we felt okay with the result of the match, but not with the way we played,” said Kroos explaining the match.
Kroos admitted that Real Madrid played better in the second half, but the level of play was not satisfactory. “The second half was a little better, but still not so good that you could say that we definitely deserved to be in the next round,” added the 34-year-old. “We didn’t do everything well,” explained Kroos, as reported by the Champions League website.
The tactician Carlo Ancelotti said that regardless of results and mistakes, the psychology of the players was the determining factor in the match with Leipzig. “Not enough intensity, not enough worry about the mistakes we made. I think the psychological aspect plays a big role here, very big,” said Don Carlo.
Real Madrid were only able to break the deadlock in the second half through the action of Vinicius Junior (65′). This Brazilian striker successfully tore the Leipzig goal after taking advantage of the attack momentum built by Jude Bellingham and Kroos.
El Real’s success in scoring a goal in the second half could not be separated from Ancelotti’s direction in the dressing room. “At the break, I told them that I wanted them to press Leipzig more and better,” said Ancelotti. “Even though I would have liked more energy to be released, the reality is that we played with our brakes on for most of the match,” he added.
However, in the end Ancelotti admitted that he was quite happy with the players’ performance and the result of the match. “They played according to their own abilities. Of course, that means we have to suffer, but the only thing that matters is that we are in the quarter-finals,” concluded Ancelotti.
