Real Madrid overpowers Liverpool, angered by a disallowed goal against Man City
Real Madrid overpowered Liverpool 3-1 in the first leg of the sides' Champions League quarterfinal on Tuesday. Borussia Dortmund was left frustrated by a disallowed goal in its 2-1 defeat to Manchester City. Despite being without starting center-back pairing Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane, Real Madrid looked a class above the reigning Premier League champion and took the lead through Vinicius Junior's first-half goals and Marco Arsenio.
Mohamed Salah pulled one back for Liverpool, but with 25 minutes remaining, Real extended its lead, with Vinicius grabbing his second of the night. It was the same shorelines as when the two sides met in the Champions League final in 2018; Liverpool faces a tough challenge to overturn the two-goal deficit in the second leg at Anfield on April 14. Vinicius Junior celebrates with teammates Casemiro and Ferland Mendy after scoring.
The experienced midfield of Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, and Casemiro took control of the game's flow, and it was an excellent through-ball from Kroos that enabled Real Madrid to open the scoring. Vinicius controlled the ball masterfully on his chest before firing past Alisson in the Liverpool goal. Liverpool's evening went from bad to worse moments later as Trent Alexander-Arnold's misplaced header from another Kroos pass was pounced on by Asensio, who lifted the ball over Alisson before tapping home.
The Reds looked better after the break and reduced the deficit six minutes into the second half as Salah profited from Georginio Wijnaldum and Diego Jota's neat work to finish past Thibaut Courtois. However, as Liverpool attempted to restore parity, sloppy passes and errant shots disrupted its flow. Real Madrid extended its lead as Vinicius squeezed a first-time shot past Alisson following a slick buildup play by Karim Benzema and Modric.
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