The round will be decided at the Bernabéu
Betis 2-1 Real Madrid
February 19, 2008 -Real Madrid started strong and scored an early goal -Raúl's 60th in the Champions League-, but the game got complicated after the Italians' second strike. Cannavaro played his 100th match in a European competition and Diarra his 50th in the Champions League. The round will be decided at the Bernabéu in a fortnight.
The return of the Champions League saw the fourth clash between Real Madrid and Roma in the history of both clubs, but the first to take place in a two-game knock-out stage.
The return of Gabriel Heinze -after recovering from a tear in the femoral biceps that kept him off the pitch for over a month- allowed Ramos to assume right back duties while the former paired with Fabio Cannavaro in the centre of defence. Gago and Diarra covered midfield with Guti further on the right. Ruud van Nistelrooy also made his first starting line-up since his injury.
Raúl's 60th Champions League goal
Roma gave the initial scare with a three-minute siege on Casillas' goal from inside the box. A few minutes later, Robben controlled the ball down the left, passing the ball back to Guti from the goal-line. The second captain had a shot from outside the box that was flicked in by Raúl (8').
Roma were forced to react and tried their luck with a weak shot by Cassetti easily grabbed by Casillas. This chance was followed by a disallowed off-side strike by Ruud van Nistelrooy. Both sides had several missed; De Rossi tried from the 3/4 line (20') and Raúl failed to score from a cross into the box served by Robben.
Madrid were too merciful. The missed chance gave way to Roma's first goal: the ball hit Gago -on the flour for receiving a foul- from a cross by Mancini into the small area, reaching Pizarro, who shot and scored after the ball once again ricocheted on Gago (23').
The Whites stood their ground and looked comfortable on the pitch, reaching Roma's box with ease thanks to the open spaces left by their defence. Raúl assisted Van Nistelrooy brilliantly, but the Dutchman wasn't comfortably positioned to shot from the pass and sent the ball out (28’). This was followed by a corner-kick by Guti that Ramos' failed to reach in time, a missed shot by Robben from the left of the box, and two free-kicks awarded to Real that didn't go in... Both teams reached half-time still 1-1.
Roman justice
Five minutes into the second half, Van Nistelrooy tried to lob the ball over keeper Doni, who managed to grab it. Five later, Roma fiercely attacked the Whites. The locals' defensive lined moved back and it was becoming clear that coach Spalletti's strategy was to always look for Maldini when the team had possession. The captain passed the ball to Mancini inside the box, who defeated Casillas in a one-on-one and scored from a nice crossed shot (57’).
Raúl came close to scoring the equaliser from yet another cross by Robben on the 66-minute mark, but the ball was cleared by the Italian defence. A magnificent Gago worked hard on recovering and serving the ball, while Robben fed the attack down both wings. Two missed shots from outside the area by the Argentine (72’) and Ramos (74’) soon followed. Drenthe came in for Diarra and gave a brilliant assist to Van Nistelrooy, but the Dutchman's shot hit the post. Three minutes later, Ruud served a ball for Raúl inside the box. The captain left if for Baptista to ram in from outside, but his shot went over the crossbar (81’). In the end, the Whites were defeated, but there is still a chance for them to make it to the quarterfinals in the game at the Bernabéu in two weeks' time.
MATCH REPORT:
2 - ROMA: Doni; Panucci (Tonetto, 67’), Juan (Ferrari, 76’), Mexes, Cassetti; Giuly, De Rossi, Pizarro (Aquilani, 61’), Mancini; Perrotta & Totti.
1 - REAL MADRID: Casillas; Torres, Heinze, Cannavaro, Torres; Guti, Gago, Diarra (Drenthe, 78’), Robben (Baptista, 78’); Raúl & Van Nistelrooy.
REFEREE: Herbert Fandel (GER). Booked Diarra (22’), De Rossi (41’), Torres (63’), Perrotta (67’), Ramos (68’, suspended for the next match) & Cassetti (91’).
GOALS:
0-1, min.7: Raúl.
1-1, min.23: Pizarro.
2-1, min.57: Mancini.
NOTES: Matchday 24 of La Liga. Venue: Manuel Ruíz de Lopera Stadium. Attendance: 50,000.
Match report by Laura Navas
Photography by Alejandro González
Translation by Michael J. O'Donnell
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