Real Madrid are inevitable

Real Madrid played Bayern Munich to a scintillating 2-2 draw in the first leg of the Champions League semi-finals at Allianz Arena on Tuesday.

While no one will bat an eye at the scoreline (especially not Daniel Sturridge), Bayern surprisingly looked like the better side in a draw where they’re decidedly the underdogs. On a night of fine margins, Bayern led the game in nearly every statistical measure. They had more possession, shots, shots on target, and corners than Real Madrid, but at the end of the day were no match for Los Blancos’ Champions League plot armor.

Outside of a few moments of individual brilliance from Vini Jr., Real Madrid had little to offer in the attacking third. But with a team of their quality, sometimes…

All it takes is a moment

…for them to punch you in the mouth. Bayern learned that lesson the hard way when the visitors struck against the run of play in the 24th minute thanks to a perfectly-weighted through ball from Toni Kroos.

The hosts regained control shortly thereafter, and were positioned to head to the Bernabéu up 2-1 as late as the 82nd minute. Then, Lucas Vázquez conceded a clumsy penalty that Vini Jr. squared away to even the tie. Just like that.🫰

Zoom out: While there’s still 90 minutes of soccer left to play, the Spanish giants head into next week’s reverse fixture as strong favorites at home. There’s no other team in the world that knows how to get over the line quite like Real Madrid in the Champions League, and from here it would be a surprise if they didn’t beat Bayern to set themselves up for a shot at a record-extending 15th title.

📚 Read: Exploring the numbers behind Real Madrid’s Champions League voodoo.