Real Madrid weren’t exactly sparkling at home to RB Leipzig in the UEFA Champions League tonight but managed to find the goals that leave the Germans rooted to the bottom of Group F tonight.
Federico Valverde was on target ten minutes from time to fire his side towards victory and on to six points in the group. Marco Asensio made it definitive in stoppage time for a 2-0 result.
That came after a number of chances for Marco Rose’s visitors. I counted three decent opportunities across both halves for Leipzig to take the lead, only to be denied by Thibaut Courtois and company.
Real’s victory could well end up being an important one for Celtic.
Given the Spaniards have already beaten the Bhoys, we’re really looking for them to run away with the group in first position, leaving the other two teams to fight it out with Ange Postecoglou’s team.
Ultimately, Celtic’s performances and showings over the next three matches will determine where we finish, but every point is a prisoner at this level, so the fact Leipzig have none after two matchdays is good news for us.
It certainly puts a better shine on the draw earned away to Shakhtar this evening. Although we could have won that fixture, not being beaten by the Ukrainians leaves us in a decent position.
The doubleheader against Leipzig in October is massive, as is the return fixture against Shakhtar. But with two of them at home, we can certainly feel confident about picking up more points in this group.
The last 16 is the dream, of course, but finishing third and moving into the UEFA Europa League would be no disgrace. Tonight’s results in Warsaw and Madrid were a decent step towards making progression a reality.
In other news, Celtic’s stand-out performer against Shakhtar Donetsk.
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