Analysing the Last 5 Times Real Madrid Drew a UCL First Leg & How They Fared in the Return Fixture

Analysing the Last 5 Times Real Madrid Drew a UCL First Leg & How They Fared in the Return Fixture

Isaac Darko
updated at May 10, 2023 at 3:09 PM
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  • Real Madrid hosted Man City at the Santiago Bernabeu in the Champions League first leg semis
  • The match ended in a one-all draw after De Bruyne cancelled out Vinicius Junior's opening goal
  • Sports Brief analyses what happened next when Real Madrid drew the first leg of a UCL knockout

Real Madrid and Manchester City fought to a thrilling 1-1 draw, leaving the titanic clash hanging in the balance.

Vinicius Junior and Kevin De Bruyne traded breathtaking goals as Los Blancos and the Cityzens shared honours in the first leg of their semi-final blockbuster at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Vinicius Junior, Real Madrid, Manchester City
Vinicius Junior celebrate after opening the scoring for Real Madrid against Manchester City. Photo by Fantasista
Source: Getty Images

Pep Guardiola's side had dominated the early stages of the match only to concede from a magnificent Vini Junior strike in the first half, Talk Sports reported.

But just when Los Blancos were pushing for their second goal, De Bruyne stunned the home crowd midway through the second half, with a vicious hit of his own from a distance.

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"We merited a better result than this. But we'll enter the second leg with the same confidence and optimism that we can win over there," Real Madrid supremo Luka Modric said after the match via Tribal Football.

Just as Modric said, the tie is far from over. Real Madrid have been in eight Champions League finals in the modern era, and they have won each and every one of them.

But how have the Spanish giants fared in the reverse fixtures when they drew in the first leg of a Champions League match?

Sports Brief looks at the last five times they’ve drawn the first leg of a Champions League knockout – and what happened next.

CSKA Moscow 1-1 Real Madrid (2012)

Real Madrid, under Jose Mourinho, broke Barcelona's dominance at the top of La Liga with an outstanding 100-point domestic campaign in the 11/12 season.

The White Angels were extraordinary that year, so when Pontus Wernbloom equalized for CSKA Moscow in the round of 16 matchup in the Russian capital, there was little cause for alarm.

Exactly as expected, the La Liga giants eliminated the Russian champions with ease in the second leg, winning 4-1 at the Bernabeu.

Real Madrid 1-1 Man Utd (2013)

In the 2012–13 group stage, Real Madrid came in second place to Jurgen Klopp's Borussia Dortmund, which put them in the difficult position of having to play Manchester United in the round of 16.

Danny Welbeck's early goal in the first leg at the Bernabeu was tied by Cristiano Ronaldo, who also scored against his former team at Old Trafford after Madrid rallied from behind to win 2-1, but the Portuguese icon chose not to celebrate.

Sergio Ramos' own goal gave United the lead, but after Nani was controversially dismissed, the visitors scored two quick goals to win the tie 3-2 on aggregate.

Atletico Madrid 0-0 Real Madrid (2015)

For three straight seasons, Real Madrid eliminated Diego Simeone's Atletico from the Champions League.

Between their two finals in Lisbon and San Siro, the Madrid-based clubs met once, in the quarterfinals of the 2014–15 season.

Atletico had previously eliminated Real Madrid from the Copa del Rey and destroyed them 4-0 in La Liga that season.

However, Los Blancos once more showed they’re built differently in Europe.

After Jan Oblak delivered a man-of-the-match performance in a first-leg goalless draw, Madrid left Vicente Calderon dissatisfied.

In the return leg, Javier Hernandez grabbed an 88th-minute winner for Real Madrid at the Bernabeu. Carlo Ancelotti's charges advanced to face Juventus in the semifinals, which they unexpectedly lost, depriving us of an El Clasico final.

Man City 0-0 Real Madrid (2016)

Manuel Pellegrini's final season at Manchester City was disappointing. The Cityzens barely made the top four and had their worst Premier League point total in the previous 13 years. They did, however, defeat PSG and Dynamo Kyiv to go to their first-ever Champions League semifinal.

And City put on a rock-solid defensive performance against Zinedine Zidane's Real Madrid at the Etihad, drawing 0-0.

But they were pipped 1-0 in the second leg at the Bernabeu, thanks to an early Fernando own goal.

Real Madrid went on to beat city rivals Atletico on penalties in the final – the first of a historic threepeat under Zidane.

Real Madrid 1-1 Chelsea (2021)

In the first leg of the semi-finals at the Santiago Bernabeu, Chelsea and Real Madrid drew 1-1.

The Blues put up a valiant fight in the Spanish capital, staying in the game after Karim Benzema cancelled out Christian Pulisic's early goal.

The following week, Chelsea put up a spirited display to defeat Los Blancos 2-0 at Stamford Bridge. Timo Werner and Mason Mount scored the goals, but the midfield fight was won by N'Golo Kante alone.

The Frenchman was rightfully named man of the match in both legs before gaining the same honour in the final against Manchester City.

Authors
Isaac Darko photo
Isaac Darko
Isaac Darko is a La Liga, Ligue 1 and Bundesliga editor at Sports Brief with a Degree in Journalism and Communications from Ghana Institute of Journalism (2010)
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