After the 4-3 loss in the first leg of the Champions League semifinals last year, Real Madrid faced the return home with several doubts. Many considered the team would be eliminated after Riyad Mahrez’s goal at 73. Real Madrid had 15 minutes to score two goals or be out from the edition of the highest European competition.
At that moment Rodrygo appeared in all his splendor and, in the final minutes, he scored twice: the first at 90 minutes and the second one a minute later to take the series to extra time. There, Karim Benzema would convert a penalty suffered by the Brazilian and the Spanish team would go on to a new final that they would later win against Liverpool.
READ MORE
++ Fulham’s Willian says he doesn’t intend to return to Brazilian football
++ Brazil plays to be the champion, says Matheus Martins about U20 World Cup
++ How was Vanderlei Luxemburgo’s experience as Real Madrid coach
That game marked Rodrygo with fire and to this day white fans remember it as Madrid’s great comeback and also Rodrygo’s great comeback. It gave him a very important place within the consideration of coach Carlo Ancelotti and his own teammates as they saw the young Brazilian winger appear in very hot moments of the match.
If someone doubted the quality or the temperament of the player, the doubts vanished at that moment, giving such a great class of quality and temperance is not an everyday thing, much less at such a young age as was the case with him.
Now Real Madrid face a new semifinal against Manchester City and it will be tough. The merengues will try to defend their title and maybe create a new dynasty, such as happened during Cristiano Ronaldo’s tenure with the club, with three consecutive titles and four in general.
