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Ex-Manchester United midfielder Owen Hargreaves has lauded three Real Madrid players for their outings in the recent 1-1 UEFA Champions League last-16 second leg draw against RB Leipzig.
Los Blancos, who are leading the La Liga standings with 66 points from 27 games, advanced to the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals with a 2-1 aggregate win against Leipzig. While Vinicius Junior scored for the hosts in the 65th minute, Willi Orban bagged for the Bundesliga outfit three minutes later earlier this Wednesday (March 6).
Discussing Real Madrid's goal of their recent contest, Hargreaves claimed that the La Liga giants managed to score owing to three players' combined efforts. He told TNT Sports (h/t Eurosport):
"It's a world-class goal from three world-class players. Toni Kroos initially, Jude Bellingham [with the assist] and then the finish [from Vinicius], the weight of the pass, everything about it was top drawer."
Despite Vinicius' goal, Hargreaves lambasted the hosts' performance:
"Real Madrid were bang average over the two games but when you have world-class players like that who can decide a game in the blink of an eye and recognise it, it's really special. There are so many details in that goal. I think Carlo Ancelotti plays for that. He knew they were going to get those moments and it came."
During their last-16 second leg tie, Carlo Ancelotti's outfit relished 54% possession and recorded 11 shots compared to Leipzig's 20 attempts.
Ex-Liverpool striker Peter Crouch opined on Orban's equalizer, saying:
"It was what they deserved. I think a lot of [the Leipzig stars] were very, very upset after the game because you could see, over the course of the two legs, they could have beaten Real Madrid with the chances they had. Unfortunately, they just didn't take them."
Jude Bellingham is comparable with former Real Madrid star, suggests Carlo Ancelotti
During an interaction ahead of his team's clash against RB Leipzig on Wednesday, Los Blancos boss Carlo Ancelotti was asked whether Jude Bellingham is similar to Kaka. He replied (h/t X/MadridXtra):
"Yes, he has something from Kaka. I don't think there is much difference."
Bellingham, 20, has emerged as one of the world's best players since arriving from Borussia Dortmund in a €134 million switch past July. He has found the back of the net 20 times and contributed nine assists in 31 matches across all competitions for Real Madrid so far.
Kaka, on the other hand, joined Los Blancos for €67 million after a remarkable stint at AC Milan in 2009. He helped them lift three trophies, registering 29 goals and 39 assists in 120 appearances along the way.
