The UEFA Champions League semifinal between Bayern Munich and Real Madrid kicked off Tuesday with a delicious first leg, with superstars and sparring, with noise and nerves — but without a winner.
Bayern and Real dueled at the Allianz Arena in Germany. Both scored blinding goals. Both, for more than 25 minutes, led.
But neither held their lead. Vinicius Jr.’s second goal on the night earned Real Madrid a 2-2 draw, and an implicit advantage heading back home for next week’s second leg at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu.
Bayern, looking to salvage a rocky season, took control of the ball and the game early. But Madrid, boosted by the brilliance of Vini and Toni Kroos, took a 1-0 lead midway through the first half. Vini dragged Kim Min-Jae out of position, then darted behind the Bayern defender to give the visitors a lead against the run of play.
Bayern responded over five frantic second-half minutes. Leroy Sané unleashed a laser, his first goal in 185 days, to equalize.
Harry Kane then put Bayern ahead from the penalty spot, after a dazzling dribble from Jamal Musiala, and suddenly, the kings of Europe were wobbling. For most of the second half, Bayern pressed for — and nearly found — a third goal.
But with less than 10 minutes remaining, Kim clumsily fouled Rodrygo in the box. Vini converted the penalty. And Real Madrid, as always, as ever, just as it did last round against Manchester City, weathered a European storm.
The 14-time champions will be favored heading into next Wednesday’s second leg (3 p.m. ET, CBS/Paramount+/Univision). They are on the cusp of yet another final, perhaps against their soon-to-be star, Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappé. (PSG’s semifinal against Borussia Dortmund begins Wednesday, and concludes next Tuesday.)
They will know as well as anyone, though, that there is still work to do. Bayern, although dethroned in Germany, proved Tuesday that it is still mighty.
You can re-live the first leg as it happened below.
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FULL TIME: Bayern München 2 – 2 Real Madrid
Vini Jr.’s brace keeps things level in the first leg as the deciding match heads to Madrid next Wednesday.
Vini Jr. equalizes with his 5th goal in Champions League!
Vini equalizes from the penalty spot.
A nightmarish night for Bayern center back Kim Min-Jae.
He was dragged around and exposed by Vini on the first goal earlier.
Now his clumsy tackle on Rodrygo throws away Bayern’s lead. The penalty was a no-doubter. Vini converts. 2-2.
Penalty to Real Madrid!! Vini Jr. is stepping up to take the shot.
Luka Modric, 38 years young, just dropped an absolute dime to Vini.
Manuel Neuer stands tall and saves.
So many big-time players on display here. Quite a spectacle. This is peak Champions League.
10 minutes remaining, still 2-1 to Bayern
Real Madrid subs
Luka Modric and Brahim Diaz replace Toni Kroos and … Jude Bellingham?!?
A bit of a surprise. But Bellingham has been pretty quiet tonight.
14 minutes plus stoppage time remaining. Bayern looking more likely to score again.
Real Madrid wobbling
A deflected Harry Kane shot trickles past the post.
A free Eric Dier header nestles right into Andriy Lunin’s arms.
Real Madrid living dangerously here. As it stands, this is a 50/50 proposition going back to Madrid for the second leg. Another Bayern goal would change that.
What a turnaround!
From 0-1 to 2-1 in less than five minutes!
And it was engineered by Bayern’s three most dynamic players.
Konrad Laimer drove into some space in midfield to spray the ball out to Leroy Sané on the right wing.
Sané snapped his 185-day goal drought with a quintessential Leroy Sané goal — cutting inside on his left foot, and unleashing a laser.
Then Jamal Musiala danced into the Real Madrid box and won the penalty.
Error de Lucas dejando la pierna. Con Musiala es un peligro hacer algo así.
In his first Champions League semifinals appearance, Harry Kane puts Bayern up 2-1:
And now after the equalizer from Sane, a penalty to Bayern!
Second half underway
One halftime change: Raphaël Guerreiro on for Leon Goretzka in Bayern’s midfield.
Which is not a “F it, let’s chase the game” change. It’s more of a minor tactical tweak.
Toni Kroos’ first half: not just the assist. Pretty darn close to on-ball perfection.
After a Harry Kane free kick fizzes a few feet wide, Bayern Munich now has eight shots to Real Madrid’s one.
But the one was very high-quality, and the eight have mostly been so-called “half-chances” — none stands out as a glaring miss.
Still 1-0 with halftime approaching.
Can Bayern re-find rhythm?
The challenge now for Bayern: re-find the rhythm of the opening 20 minutes, don’t let one moment corrupt your gameplan.
There’s risk in starting to chase the game, and losing control, especially against this Real Madrid team.
Real, meanwhile, will be even more happy to drop deep into its own defensive third and play on the counter — which is arguably when Los Blancos are at their best.
