06.11.2012 » Real Madrid 2-2 Borussia Dortmund. Ozil's late goal rescues 1 point
Things haven't been going exactly smoothly for Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League lately, as the Merengues got held to a frustrating home draw this Tuesday night. There's an easy spottable common factor in this short equation and it goes by the name of Borussia Dortmund. The German champions visited the Santiago Bernabéu and confirmed the great impression they had left two weeks ago at the Westfalenstadion, after putting on, once again, a very solid performance which nearly allowed them to bring the 3 points home. Real Madrid's reaction came from a header by Pepe at the 34th minute and late in the 2nd half, from a succesfully taken free-kick by Mesut Ozil. With two fixtures left at the group stages, the Merengues remain safe in Group D's 2nd place, 1 point below the still leaders Borussia Dortmund, 3 points above Ajax and 5 above Manchester City.
Cristiano Ronaldo game photos in Real Madrid vs Borussia Dortmund
Real Madrid 2-2 Borussia Dortmund goals and highlights:
There was a clear intent from Real Madrid in starting the game with an high intensity and immediatly seek for an early goal that would allow them to control their opponent easily for the rest of the game. What José Mourinho was certainly not expecting for, was a fearless response from Jurgen Klopp's side, who managed to create problems into Real Madrid's defence througout the whole game.
The opener appeared slightly before the first half an hour and it the visitors's side were the ones having all the reasons to celebrate. A long ball sent towards Real Madrid half was aimed at the giant forward Lewandowski, who had already scored two weeks ago against the Merengues. The Polish striker then won the ball in the air against Pepe, heading it to his side where Marco Reus showed up already free from Arbeloa's marking. The Borussia midfielder was given all the time in the World to control the ball and pick the right moment to strike it beyond Iker Casillas, who also left the impression that he could have done better if he was a bit more inspired last night.
José Mourinho's men reacted quickly and the response came from an insistence attacking play, short minutes after. Mesut Ozil picked the ball close to the edge of Borussia Dortmund's area, took a peak at his teammates' moving at the far post and put in a perfect cross for Pepe. The Portuguese defender headed the ball already very close to Dortmund's goalkeeper, Roman Weidenfeller, and gave him no chance for any possible save. With a 1-1 on the scoreline, the Bernabéu were allowed to breath with relief once again, but that good feeling wouldn't last too long though...
Similarly to what happened in Borussia's first goal, the German side would regain the lead in the game once more, in a play started from a long kick by their goakeeper. This time it was Varane who lost the ball in the challenge in the air against Lewandowski, inviting the German champions to explore a lot of space at the back of Real Madrid's defence. Grosskreutz picked the ball, drove it forward a few meters and assisted Mario Gotze in the center. The German wonderboy controlled the pass and with Arbeloa pressuring him very closely, he seems to have forced the Spanish defender to put on a little flick that ended up deceiving Iker Casillas, getting past the Spanish goalkeeper. Real had just conceded a second goal in the worst possible moment in the first half, and the game would go into half-time just seconds later.
José Mourinho wasn't happy with his team's performance and decided to bring on some changes after the break. Gonzalo Higuaín and Luca Modric were left aside, even though the Argentinian forward seems to have picked a minor injury, which might have been the main reason for his substitution. Callejón and Essien came in and the truth is that team started the 2nd half looking a lot more dangerous than what they looked in the first 45 minutes.
Cristiano Ronaldo was lacking the pace and the usual engagement he usually brings to games, but as the team improved, he also started showing a bit more of his class. The Merengues came from the dressing rooms at full tilt and Callejón managed to score a goal that ended being disallowed for offside position. After several TV replays, the images still don't appear to be conclusive, so it seems fair to accept that the linesman decision might have been the right call on that particular play.
As the second half unfolded, Real Madrid gradually lost some of their initial momentum and Borussia Dortmund appeared again to be capable of holding the Merengues from scoring another goal. José Mourinho's men had a lot more ball possession than their opponents, but everytime the German side launched a counter-attack, Real's defence shaked more than what's been normal to see over the last couple of years.
With everyone almost running out hopes, the Merengues showed there are reasons to believe on this team until the last breath of the game. A free-kick close to Borussia's edge of the area left Cristiano Ronaldo and Mesut Ozil exchanging a few words in order to decide who would take the set-piece. The German midfielder appeared to be more confident at that time and Ronaldo granted him the opportunity to take his shot. Fortunately, Ozil's curled shot was very precise and ended up fooling Dortmund's goalkeeper, who seemed to think the ball was going wide and didn't put his body in front of it to block it. The equalizer arrived with only one minute left on the clocks and the result wouldn't suffer any further change until the final whistle. In two weeks from now, Real Madrid will travel to Manchester to face Roberto Mancini side, but the vital game might very well end up being the home fixture against Ajax, on the 4th of December, 2012.
Real Madrid vs Borussia Dortmund:
Goalkeeper: Casillas
Defenders: Sergio Ramos, Varane, Pepe, Arbeloa
Midfielders: Xabi Alonso, Modric, Ozil
Attackers: Di María, Cristiano Ronaldo and Higuaín
| Match stats provided by www.ronaldo7.net
|
||
|---|---|---|
Real Madrid
|
vs
|
Borussia Dortmund
|
2 |
Goals |
2 |
20 |
Shots |
7 |
11 |
Shots on goal |
5 |
4 |
Corner kicks |
2 |
13 |
Fouls commited |
17 |
0 |
Yellow cards |
2 |
0 |
Red cards |
0 |
65% |
Ball possession |
35% |
Cristiano Ronaldo next game for Real Madrid will be against Levante, for the Spanish League "La Liga", this Sunday night (11-10-2012). In the meantime, you can watch Chelsea vs Shakhtar, Celtic vs Barcelona, Braga vs Manchester United, and Bayern Munich vs Lille, all matches provided from our soccer live section.
Real Madrid next game:
Levante vs Real Madrid kick-off time (11-10-2012):
Jakarta (Indonesia) | GMT+8: 03:30
Spain (Madrid) | GMT+2: 21:30
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | GMT+1: 20:30
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | GMT-1: 18:30
New York (United States) | GMT-4: 15:30
Los Angeles (United States) | GMT-7: 12:30
Beijing (China) | GMT-7: 12:30
Sources: ronaldo7.net / uefa.com
