Match report: Real Madrid 1-1 Tottenham
David Hytner was at the Bernabeu for the Guardian and his winged monkey has just pitched up in London bearing this on-the-whistle match report. Tune in later for added reflections and quotes from the players and managers involved in a great game of football in the Spanish capital.
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Elsewhere in this group: Apoel and Borussia Dortmund have also shared the points after their match in Cyprus finished with an identical scoreline. Spurs and Real lead the group with seven points each, while their rivals already look to be duking it out for third place with just one point apiece.
Full-time: Real Madrid 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur
It ends one apiece between Real and Tottenham, where a young Spurs side depleted by injury and rather lacking in Champions League experience has put in a very impressive and mature performance to make off with a share of the spoils. A Raphael Varane shin into his own net gave them their first ever goal against Real, while the only noticable blot on their copybook was a ludicrous Serge Aurier challenge that gifted Real Madrid their equaliser from the penalty spot. Cristiano Ronaldo made no mistake as he sent Hugo Lloris the wrong way just before half-time.
Tottenham missed two glorious chances in the second half, with Harry Kane being denied by a wonderful save from Keylor Navas when he should have scored. Christian Eriksen also went close, only to be denied by another good Navas save. At the other end of the pitch, Hugo Lloris also performed heroics, saving brilliantly from Karim Benzema with his left foot, before using his left hand to keep out a Cristiano Ronaldo shot that was goalbound. A point won for Spurs after a terrific performance, but they may feel they should have taken all three.
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90+3 min: Tottenham are finishing this match on the front foot, with Son advancing forward as the referee blows his final whistle. It’s all over and it’s finished all square at the Bernabeu.
90+2 min: Raphael Varane is forced to hack clear as Son and Kane hunt him down on the edge of his own penalty area.
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90+1 min: Real Madrid have a corner as the game reaches its knockings. The ball’s sent into the Tottenham penalty area, where Lloris claims comfortably.
88 min: Moussa Sissoko requires treatment after what looks like an innocuous slip. There doesn’t seem too much wrong with him, but he limps off to be replaced by Heung-min Son.
86 min: Real Madrid substitution: Lucas Vazquez on for Isco.
83 min: Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld leap either side of Cristiano Ronaldo to stop the Real Madrid striker getting a header on goal as he climbs to reach a cross from the left.
82 min: Moussa Sissoko plays a ball down the right flank for Christian Eriksen to chase. The Spurs playmaker gets in behind the Real Madrid defence and attempts to drill the ball square to Harry Kane, but his delivery is weak. He looks shattered with tiredness.
81 min: Elsewhere in this group, Borussia Dortmund have equalised against Nicosia in Cyprus, where it’s 1-1.
80 min: Tottenham substitution: Danny Rose on, Fernando Llorente off.
77 min: Real go forward, with Marco Asensio picking out Cristiano Ronaldo with a ball out wide to the left. A period of sustained Real Madrid pressure ensues, but ends with Marcelo getting a pat on the back from his own manager as he slides into Zinedine Zidane’s technical area and lands in a pile at the great man’s feet while unsuccessfully trying to keep the ball from going out for a throw-in.
76 min: Real Madrid substitution: Marco Asensio on, Karim Benzema off.
74 min: Navas to the rescue again as Eriksen shoots towards the near post from a narrow angle, when picking out Harry Kane at the far post might have been a better idea. Kane certainly thinks it might have been a better idea and isn’t slow about telling his team-mate through the medium of mime. Eriksen’s corner is dreadful and Benzema clears.
72 min: CHANCE!!! Keylor Navas pulls off a miraculous save from Harry Kane, who was put clean through on goal by Fernando Llorente. The Spurs striker was seven or eight yards from goal and you’d have bet the farm on him scoring, but Real Madrid’s goalkeeper got a hand to a shot that was heading for the bottom right-hand corner and clawed the ball out for a corner. That was incredible opportunity and Kane is on his knees with an expression on his face that suggests he can’t believe he didn’t score. It was a fine save, but a bad miss.
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70 min: From the corner, Spurs earn some respite when Cristiano Ronaldo shoves Vertonghen in the small of the back and concedes a free-kick.
69 min: Spurs embark on a rare second half sortie into Real Madrid territory. It comes to nothing and Real go on the attack again with Achraf Hakimi on the ball down the right flank. The Moroccan teenager has been very impressive tonight. Once again he runs at Vertonghen and wins a corner, much to the Tottenham player’s disgust. He thinks it should have been a goal-kick.
67 min: Elsewhere in this group, Apoel have taken a surprise lead against Borussia Dortmund in Cyprus. Mickael Pote with the only goal of the game there, I’m told.
64 min: Another Lloris parry keeps Cristiano Ronaldo at bay. This time the Real Madrid man was running away from goal with the ball on his left foot, but still managed to unleash a powerful diagonal drive that the Tottenham goalkeeper blocked but couldn’t hold.
62 min: Another great stop from Hugo Lloris, who gets a strong left-hand to a rising shot from Cristiano Ronaldo that was heading goalwards. Tottenham’s French captain is keeping them in the game with some splendid saves.
60 min: Tottenham win a free-kick wide on the right for a foul on Eriksen. The Dane takes the free-kick and his delivery sails straight into the arms of Keylor Navas.
58 min: Good defending from Davinson Sanchez, who is on hand to hook the ball clear as Cristiano Ronaldo attempts to pick out Toni Kroos with a neat little dink into the penalty area. Spurs are on the ropes here and have been since the start of the second half.
57 min: Tottenham win a corner, with Hakimi putting the ball out of play. Eriksen sends the ball into the Real penalty area, where Davinson Sanchez heads wide.
55 min: Hugo Lloris denies Karim Benzema with a sensational save. The French striker sent a powerful downward header goalwards from about five yards out, but his compatriot somehow managed to keep it out with his left foot. Incredible goalkeeping, although a cynic might say Lloris didn’t know much about it. I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt.
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52 min: Harry Winks attempts to play a through-ball to the feet of Harry Kane on the edge of the Real Madrid penalty area, but Casemiro intercepts. The idea was good, the execution left a little to be desired.
50 min: Good hold-up play from Harry Kane leads to a Tottenham corner as the striker’s cross towards Christian Eriksen goes out of play off Raphael Varane. From the corner, Real Madrid get the opportunity to clear their lines after a Harry Winks foul on Luka Modric just outside the Real Madrid penalty area.
49 min: Real Madrid win a free-kick wide on the right near the touchline. The ball’s played in to the crowded penalty area, where Eric Dier heads clear for Spurs.
47 min: Real Madrid play the ball out from the back under a heavy Tottenham press and Cristiano Ronaldo tries to release Hakimi down the right flank. The young full-back has enjoyed a thrilling duel with Jan Vertonghen all evening and on this occasion, the Spurs defender prevails.
Second half: Real Madrid 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur
46 min: Spurs get the second half under way with no changes in personnel on either side.
Looking at the Spurs goal again: It seems Harry Kane didn’t get any sort of touch on the ball before Raphael Varane shinned it past his own keeper. The Spurs striker looked a smidge offside as he began his run across the bows of the Real Madrid defender towards the near post, got in front of his man but failed to get a touch on the ball. It didn’t matter.
Other half-time replays show that Fernando Llorente should definitely have got a penalty when Casemiro hooked his leg during the scramble following the corner I described in the 22nd minute, while the needless Serge Aurier challenge on Toni Kroos that led to Real Madrid’s penalty was just dimwitted. The Spurs full-back had no business diving in on Kroos on the edge of his six-yard box, as the German scrambled to get the ball out from under his feet.
Elsewhere in Group H
It’s scoreless between Apoel and Borussia Dortmund in Cyprus, between two teams who have yet to secure a point in this group.
Half-time: Real Madrid 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur
A very entertaining first half comes to a close with the scores tied at one apiece. A Raphael Varane own goal gave Spurs the lead after Harry Kane got on the end of a cross from Serge Aurier and flicked the ball home off the Real Madrid defender’s shin. Shortly before half-time, Real Madrid equalised courtesy of a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty that was needlessly gifted to the home side by a rash Aurier challenge on Toni Kroos.
43 min: Serge Aurier has been criticised for his immaturity and impetuousness on more than one occasion this season and he’s likely to be castigated for the challenge that led to that penalty too. Toni Kroos had the ball stuck under his feet at the end of a good move that led to him getting possession in the Spurs penalty area and there was no need for the SPurs defender to dive in and bring him down. That didn’t stop him, mind. The referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot and booked Aurier for good measure before Ronaldo levelled the score.
GOAL! Real Madrid 1-1 Tottenham (Ronaldo 43pen)
Cristiano Ronaldo rifles the ball inside the right upright, while Hugo Lloris dives the wrong way.
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PENALTY! Real Madrid win a spot-kick!
42 min: Serge Aurier brings down Toni Kroos in the penalty area.
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40 min: Another corner for Spurs. Christian Eriksen sends the ball into the mixer, where Casemiro clears with Harry Kane lurking.
38 min: Free-kick for Real Madrid, wide on the right. Toni Kroos floats the ball into the penalty area, where Sergio Ramos heads it across the face of goal. It’s too high for Karim Benzema, who is unable to get his head to the ball for reasons that, on this occasion are not his fault.
37 min: Luka Modric floats a delightful ball into the Tottenham penalty area for Karim Benzema to attack. It’s on a plate for the France international eight yards from goal, but he appears to lose track of the trajectory and fails to connect.
35 min: Marcelo shoots into the side-netting with a shot from a tight angle that takes a nick off Davinson Sanchez. Nothing comes from the ensuing corner. There’s no let-up here in what’s turning into a fascinating game. Madrid’s players are visibly rattled and frustrated at having gone behind on their own patch.
32 min: Cristiano Ronaldo gets booked after a tussle with Jan Vertonghen, dragging the Spurs defender to the ground in his own penalty area while waiting for a corner to be delivered. Vertonghen is subsequently jeered by the Real faithful, who think he made a bit of a meal of that. They might have a point. Moments previously, Isco had brought a save out of Hugo Lloris, who put the ball out for the corner in question with a block at his near post.
30 min: Their tails well and truly up, Tottenham win another corner. Christian Eriksen pings the ball towards Fernando Llorente, who sends a header over the bar.
GOAL! Real Madrid 0-1 Tottenham (Varane 27og)
Spurs take the lead! Harry Kane gets on the end of a cross from Serge Aurier at the near post and his flick takes a horrible deflection off the shin of Raphael Varane and loops past Keylor Navas into the Real Madrid goal.
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26 min: Well, I say nothing, but I suppose Harry Winks would disagree and point out that him sending a shot high over the bar is worthy of mention.
24 min: Real Madrid win a corner, which Isco takes. From that they win another, which the winger sends long to Marcelo running in towards the far post. Spurs clear and embark on a counter-attack, with Moussa Sissoko on the ball and Serge Aurier galloping along in support. Nothing comes of it.
22 min: Spurs have a shout for a penalty turned down from the ensuing corner. Casemeiro appears to hook Llorente’s ankle in a penalty area scramble, before Keylor Navas drops on the loose ball. I’ll need to see that again before I can confirm whether or not Tottenham were hard done by. This is very entertaining stuff.
19 min: Tottenham corner. The ball is floated into the penalty area, where Harry Kane brings a smart save out of Keylor Navas with a powerful downward header that the Real goalkeeper is forced to paw over the bar as it bounces up. That was a very good save.
18 min: In the Tottenham penalty area, but running away from goal, Cristiano Ronaldo pulls a low diagonal shot just wide of the far post. Hugo Lloris had it covered.
16 min: Toni Kroos, Luka Modric and the very impressive Achraf Hakimi ping the ball back and forth from left to right about 20 yards from the Spurs goal. They’re defending so deep, with Tottenham wing-backs Serge Aurier and Davinson Sanchez pinned well back in these opening minutes.
14 min: It’s been a lively start and Real Madrid are definitely enjoying the better of things thus far. Tottenham are exceptionally lucky not to be a goal down and are currently being over-run in midfield. Early indications suggest Spurs are perhaps lacking the bit of bite that could have been added by Victor Wanyama.
12 min: Toby Alderweireld heads clear as Marcelo plays the ball into a Spurs penalty area that the visitors are defending from a very, very deep position.
10 min: Tottenham Hotspur are looking lively on the counter-attack in these early stages, but a poor touch from Christian Eriksen allows Luka Modric to bring this particular break to an end.
9 min: Casimiro plays the ball wide to the right, where Real right-back Hakimi is deep in Spurs territory. Jan Vertonghen puts a stop to his gallop.
8 min: Spurs win a throw-in deep in Real Madrid territory. Vertonghen hurls it long to Fernando Llorente in the penalty area, where the Spurs striker is penalised for backing into Casemiro.
5 min: Chance! Real Madrid waste a glorious chance to go ahead. Cristiano Ronaldo gets on the end of a Hakimi pull-back and plants a firm header against the right upright. It bounces back to the feet of Karim Benzema and with the goal gaping, he somehow pulls his shot wide of the other upright from about 10 yards out.
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4 min: Fernando Llorente squanders a chance to hook the ball across the face of goal, choosing instead to wave at the ball with the outside of his right foot before it goes out of play.
2 min: Cristiano Ronaldo is flagged for offside early doors as he tries to latch on to a through ball from deep from Raphael Varane. Spurs are employing a high press, with Harry Kane, Fernando Llorente, Moussa Sissoko and Christian Eriksen getting a sweat on in the opening minutes.
Real Madrid v Tottenham Hotspur is go
1 min: Real Madrid kick off with their players wearing white ashirts, shorts and socks. Tottenham’s players are in all black. The surface is slick on the back of some torrential rain that poured down before kick off.
A moment's silence
There’s a pause before kick-off in memory of those who have lost their lives in the wildfires spreading through Spain and Portugal.
Not long now: The teams line up in the tunnel, with Sergio Ramos and Hugo Lloris leading out their sides for the last of the pre-match niceties. They stand to attention for the Champions League anthem before a packed Bernabeu crowd. Kick-off is just a couple of minutes away.
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Mauricio Pochettino speaks ....
On the absence of Mousa Dembele: “Dembele is not on the bench because after the last training session yesterday he suffered a little bit of pain and he’s out for today,” the Tottenham manager tells BT Sport reporter Reshmin Chowdhury.
On playing Kane and Llorente up front: “It’s important for us to be brave and try to develop our game,” he says. “We know Real Madrid are a good team, but we have to try to be brave and go forward and do some damage when we go forward.”
Spurs start with two up top ...
Fernando Llorente and Harry Kane start together for the first time in a brave and surprising team selection from Mauricio Pochettino that few could have expected. The duo have played together for just 34 minutes of competitive action so far this season. It’s a turn-up for the books, but in Poch the Tottenham fans trust.
Real Madrid v Tottenham Hotspur line-ups
Real Madrid: Navas, Hakimi, Sergio Ramos, Varane, Marcelo, Kroos, Casemiro, Modric, Isco, Benzema, Ronaldo.
Subs: Casilla, Nacho, Hernandez, Lucas, Llorente, Asensio, Ceballos.
Tottenham Hotspur: Lloris, Aurier, Alderweireld, Vertonghen,
Sanchez, Dier, Winks, Sissoko, Llorente, Eriksen, Kane.
Subs: Vorm, Trippier, Rose, Son, Foyth, Walker-Peters, Georgiou.
Referee: Szymon Marciniak (Poland)
Zinedine Zidane press conference
Asked how he felt about sending a team out to face Tottenham Hotspur, Zinedine Zidane said: “We give all sides maximum respect and we treat them as big tests. We have two games against Spurs now. The first ‘final’ is tomorrow – a ‘final of the group’ between two sides on the same points. We want to produce a performance and I think it will be a good game for everyone who likes football – they’ll see a good game. Hopefully we’ll get the three points.”
On his career to date as manager of Real Madrid with 100 games under his belt: “I’m not going to give myself a mark – I’m happy,” he said. “My dream was always to play in Spain, I’m at the best club in the world and my passion is still coaching this club and hopefully I’ll get at least another 10 games.”
Mauricio Pochettino press conference
Speaking at his pre-match press conference yesterday, the Tottenham manager and one-time Espanyol stalwart had this to say about playing at Real Madrid’s ground. “It’s always special to play at the Bernabéu against Real Madrid in the Champions League,” he said. “They’re the club with the most European Cups. For English players to come here and play here is a dream from their childhoods and that’s why it’s a baptism. You feel that when you play here; that you feel the reality of football.”
Asked if he thinks his side is up to tonight’s challenge, Pochettino was non-committal and said time would tell. “We want to grow our level together,” he said “We’re up against the best side in the world right now. In the Premier League we have played against good sides, but there’s another last step to take to be competitive with the best sides in Europe and we’ll see tomorrow if we are there.”
Real Madrid team news
Gareth Bale is not fit to face his former club, as he struggles with the general sense of ennui that engulfed him in the wake of Ireland’s win over Wales in that World Cup qualifier, not to mention the calf injury that kept him out of that game. Real goalkeeper Keylor Navas is expected to recover from a thigh injury, while Jesus Vellejo, Dani Carvajal and Mateo Kovacic are also out. Marcelo and Karim Benzema both played at the weekend after spells on the sidelines and both are expected to line up for the hosts tonight.
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Tottenham Hotspur team news
Danny Rose is expected to return from injury to take a place on the Spurs bench tonight, while his fellow left-back Ben Davies has been left home suffering from illness after a terrific start to the season in which he has scored two goals and provided two assists. Dele Alli will also be a huge loss for Spurs, as he sits out the final match of a suspension. Moussa Dembele has also travelled, having missed TOttenham’s past six games through injury.
“Danny Rose will be on the bench – that’s important, maybe he’s not fit to play from the beginning but to help the team,” said Mauricio Pochettino. “It’s very good for the team, good for him after nearly 10 months away and it’s always important that players feel they can be involved and part of the team. Mousa Dembele is here as well. Dele wanted to come and stay with the team.”
Spurs bring it to the Bernabeu
Greetings one and all. Welcome to the Guardian’s minute-by-minute coverage of what promises to be an exciting night at the Bernabeu. Tottenham Hotspur are the visitors for a match between two sides who have two wins each going into the third round of Group H games. Not only that, they are also level on goal difference, goals for and goals against after their wins over Apoel and Borussia Dortmund. Its not much of a leap to suggest that it is Real and Tottenham who will be duking it out to see who wins top spot in the group ahead of the knockout stages, although Dortmund might have something to say about that. They travel to Cyprus tonight, where both sides need some points. Kick off in Madrid is at 7.45pm (BST), but stay tuned for team news and build-up as we countdown to the action.
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