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After their reverse against Alaves at home, Real Madrid suffered their second defeat in three days when Shakhtar Donetsk completed the double over Los Blancos with a 2-0 win over the reigning La Liga champions in a 2020-21 UEFA Champions League Matchday 5 fixture.
Two brilliant counter-attacking second-half goals from substitutes Dentinho and Manor Solomon helped the Ukrainian side secure a historic double over Zinedine Zidane's men despite having fewer chances and less possession in the game .
Los Blancos started the game the right way and hit the post in the fifth minute when Marco Asensio could not find the target from just a few yards out after being set up beautifully by Karim Benzema. The hosts responded almost immediately as Taison's shot at the opposite end was just inches away from the target.
Shakhtar faced an early scare when Raphael Varane caught Junior Moraes near the kick-off line in what looked like a rough collision, but the striker was back on his feet after a lengthy break. He had to be eventually taken off in the 24th minute, though.
Asensio was denied yet again from a similar position, this time by a brilliant reflex save from Anatoliy Trubin. The hosts offered very little threat going forward in the first half and only forced Thibaut Courtois to make a single save.
The deadlock was broken in the 57th minute. But it was Shakhtar who did so against the run of play, thanks to a brilliant counter-attacking play resulted in Real Madrid committing too many players forward for a corner.
Substitute Dentinho made the most of miscommunication in the Real Madrid rearguard and fired the ball past an incoming Courtois. After scoring the goal, the hosts bided their time and waited for another opening to catch the visitors on the counter.
They were not made to wait for too long, as Solomon scored a stunning solo goal after finding himself in a 4v2 situation to seal the game.
The result means that Real Madrid are on the cusp of a group-stage elimination. If Shakhtar match Madrid's result on Matchday 6, the 13-time champions will be ousted from the competition.
On that note, we take a look at the five major talking points from the game:
#5 Early substitution throws a monkey wrench into Shakhtar's plans
Shakhtar Donetsk lost their veteran striker Junior Moraes to an injury in the first half after a collision with Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane left him motionless on the ground for a couple of minutes.
Despite his desire to continue, Shakhtar head coach Luis Castro felt it wise to take him off. The loss of their veteran striker clearly had an impact on Shakhtar's game-plan because after his departure, the hosts only recorded one shot on goal in the first half,
The 33-year-old Moraes was in fine form ahead of the game, as he scored against Dynamo Kyiv last month. However, Shakhtar scored twice in the second half against Real Madrid to seal a memorable win.
#4 Real Madrid and Shakhtar Donetsk contrive to produce a dull first-half
The first 45 minutes of the game saw Real Madrid gradually assume ascendancy over the hosts in terms of possession, recording five shots on target but lacked the quality in the final third.
The game got off to a great start, as both sides came close to breaking the deadlock in the first seven minutes of the game. Asensio's shot deflected off the post while Taison's effort flew just high over the Real Madrid crossbar.
However, as the game progressed, Shakhtar looked happy to sit back and defend, attacking only on the counter courtesy the pace of their wide players - Taison and Tete - which made the game very monotonous and predictable.
Also See: 10 players with the most bookings in the 21st century.
#3 Real Madrid's defensive woes continue
Real Madrid have no one but themselves to blame after conceding the opening goal against Shakhtar.
It was a brilliant counter-attacking move by the hosts that resulted in the opener, but it was nothing that couldn't have been dealt with by the visitors.
It was always expected that Shakhtar would invite Real Madrid to attack and then catch them on the break, and that's what the hosts did. Varane and co should've been aware of the danger, but miscommunication only made the situation worse for Courtois, who was left at the striker's mercy.
Los Merengues conceded the second goal in similar fashion, with the hosts yet again catching the visitors on the break. This time it was Manor Solomon making the most of a 4v2 situation, sprinting towards goal before drilling in a shot past Courtois at the near post.
In the absence of their captain Sergio Ramos and right-back Dani Carvajal. Real Madrid's defence has clearly suffered this season, and the absence of Casemiro against Shakhtar Donetsk only exacerbated matters for the beleaguered visitors.
#2 Karim Benzema finds himself isolated in attack
Real Madrid were without some of their best players against Shakhtar Donetsk - Sergio Ramos, Eden Hazard, Casemiro and Marcelo - which meant that striker Karim Benzema was the visitors' best player on the field.
Unfortunately, in a game where the Frenchman should've been actively involved to seal his side's place in the last-16, he was completely out of sync with his teammates. Beside Courtois and the Real Madrid substitutes, Benzema had the fewest touches in the game for Los Blancos.
Winger Asensio had two good chances for Real Madrid in the first half, hitting the post once and calling Trubin into action to produce the save of the game in the 30th minute.
With a little more support, Benzema could have helped Real Madrid score off at least one of their eight shots on target.
#1 Shakhtar's counter-attacking strategy yields rich dividends
In football, gameplans formulated in the drawing board don't usually work out in matches, but when they do, it is very satisfying. Against Real Madrid, Shakhtar had a fixed plan on how they wanted to take on the 13-time champions. As was evident in their famous 3-2 win at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano last month, all Shakhtar did was to attack at the right moment.
The hosts could not attack much in the first half, as the visitors did not commit a lot of bodies forward; hence there was not a lot of scope for counter-attacks. However, when the game resumed after the break, Shakhtar punished Real Madrid not once but twice, both times on the counter, as the visitors committed too many players forward for a corner on both occasions.
With bottom-of-the-table Inter Milan winning at table-toppers Borussia Monchengladbach in the other game in the group, all four teams are in contention to reach the Round of 16. However, Madrid, who are behind Shakhtar on head-to-head will miss the bus if the Pitmen win on Matchday 6 or emulate Madrid's result against Monchengladbach.
