Real Madrid suffered a crushing defeat on Monday as they lost 2-1 at home to Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League quarter-final first leg at the Santiago Bernabéu, thanks to Luis Diaz’s opener.
The momentum remained strong thanks to Kylian Mbappé’s 74th-minute goal, and coach Alvaro Arbeloa did not hesitate to issue a strong warning to the Whites’ fans: “If you don’t believe, you can stay here.”
Arbeloa hasn’t lost faith.
Like the Merengues, Vincent Kompany’s side had two chances to take the lead before the Colombian star scored in the 41st minute. However, Diaz struck first. Five minutes later, Harry Kane’s goal in the 46th minute sealed the victory.
However, these goals not only brought victory to their rivals, but also exposed defensive problems within the merengue team.
Bayern managed the pace of the match wisely, knowing when to increase the tempo and when to slow it down. They knew how to exploit space, took advantage of the opponent’s mistakes and showed good decisiveness in important moments. Real Madrid, on the other hand, had moments of dominance but lacked the organization and clarity needed to equalize.
Despite the defeat, coach Alvaro Arbeloa remained resolute and delivered a strong message that reflected the club’s competitive spirit.
“We showed that we can hurt opponents and score goals from them. We had many chances to score more goals, but we will learn a lot from what happened and how they played. We came into this game with little time to prepare on the field, which is not easy for a team like ours,” the Real Madrid coach said in a press conference.
“…With faith in our players, we go to Germany. It is true that non-believers can stay here in Madrid, but we will do everything to win in Munich,” Arbeloa said.
And more specifically, Alvaro attributed Diaz’s goal to a mistake in the build-up and also mentioned Kane’s goal, saying: “We lost the ball and there were virtually no players to cover that loss…When you lose the ball on the break like we did, well, they score on you.”
With still time in the series, Real Madrid will be looking to bounce back in the second leg, where they will play as the visiting team and will need a solid performance to stay in contention for a spot in the semi-finals.
The match will be held next Wednesday, April 15th at 3pm ET at the Allianz Arena.
