Chapter 1063 It’s time to reflect!
?Four to zero!
When this score was born at Southampton's Glory Stadium, it quickly spread around the world at an incredible speed.
Fans around the world were shocked.
It is not surprising that Zidane's Real Madrid will lose, after all, this is Southampton's home ground.
But no one expected that Real Madrid would lose so badly and miserably.
Four goals, two from Suarez, one from Messi and one from Di Maria, the Saints performed brilliantly from top to bottom.
This surprised all the fans, and at the same time they were all sad.
Looking at the Saints' crazy momentum and amazing form this season, it would be difficult to stop them!
At least, after this game, Real Madrid head coach Zidane said in the post-match press conference that it would be very difficult for Real Madrid to turn the tables at home.
"This is undoubtedly a game that I didn't expect. We were fully prepared, but... this is a heavy blow. Even if it's an away game, it's really hard to accept losing such an important game in this way."
"Neither I nor the players will be satisfied with the result of this game, but the most important thing for us now is not to dwell on it. We need to devote ourselves to the preparations for the next game. No matter how difficult it is, we will not give up the second round of the game."
"I fully expect the criticism and blame we will receive after the game, but I want to say that Real Madrid will not be easily defeated. We can always perform miracles at the Bernabeu, and I believe this time is no exception."
When asked by media reporters whether the loss in this game was related to the lineup, Zidane said that he would take all responsibility.
"My team and I will find a solution to the problem as soon as possible to avoid the same thing happening again in the second round. In addition, I want to say that I am satisfied with the current players. I will not doubt the team's style of play because of this defeat. I will stick to this style."
Regarding the opponent Southampton in this game, Zidane said, "The Saints are at their peak, they are creating their own history, and they will be a great team."
However, Zidane also said, "No matter how great a team is, it is not invincible. We have found a way to restrain our opponents. In the second round, we will not let our opponents play so easily like we did today."
But no matter how tactful Zidane's words were in the post-match press conference, on the next day, almost all media newspapers around the world reported on this game, and without exception, almost all of them sentenced Real Madrid to death in advance.
After losing 0-4 away from home, Real Madrid had to score four goals if they wanted to turn the tables at home, and also ensure that Southampton could not score. This was undoubtedly an extremely difficult task for Real Madrid, which had performed so poorly in the first leg.
Even the Spanish newspaper Marca, which is close to Real Madrid, used the headline "The Galacticos Sinks" on the front page, believing that it would be difficult for Real Madrid to make any progress in the Champions League.
The Spanish newspaper believes that with Real Madrid lagging behind city rivals Atletico Madrid in La Liga and having been eliminated early from the Copa del Rey, the Champions League is the only battlefield where they can achieve something.
However, with a 0-4 loss to Southampton in the first leg, Real Madrid was almost eliminated early.
Marca also pointed out in its commentary that the gap between Real Madrid and Southampton is all-round.
"There is no doubt that Ancelotti's tactics in this game completely suppressed Zidane. The Saints' players crushed Real Madrid in terms of overall strength and teamwork. The score of 0-4 basically represents the performance of both sides on the field."
"But this game is not a disaster. What Real Madrid should do now is to reflect on their management over the past few years and plan the direction of the team's development in the next few years."
Marca also pointed out that "with the Premier League's financial strength skyrocketing and purchasing power greatly increased, Real Madrid's appeal to top stars is no longer as strong as before. Neymar's move to Barcelona and the failure of Real Madrid's attempts to bring in superstars such as Suarez and Aguero are all very good proof of this."
"In the absence of attraction for top stars, what Real Madrid should really do is to be pragmatic and think seriously about how to build this team into a tight whole, rather than looking like a pile of loose sand as it is now."
“Perhaps it’s time for us to rethink our superstar policy!”
It's not just Marca. In Spain, there are many voices calling for Real Madrid to reflect.
After the game, Real Madrid fans protested, demanding that the club management be held accountable and that Florentino resign.
On the other hand, the British media spoke highly of Southampton's performance, believing that the Saints are still ambitious after winning two consecutive championships and are the team with the best hope of winning three consecutive championships this season.
The Saints' strength has also directly brought about the admiration and attention of fans all over the world to this team.
Also in the upper half, in another quarter-final knockout match that was taking place at the same time, Klopp's Inter Milan challenged Guardiola's Bayern Munich away.
This game was also another focus battle that attracted much attention before the game. This was also the first time Klopp encountered Bayern Munich after leaving Dortmund.
As a result, the two sides ended in a 2-2 draw at the Allianz Arena in Munich.
This was something no one had expected.
Klopp's team took the initiative from the start of the game, frequently using Felipe Anderson and Aubameyang on the two wings to create momentum and attack the two flanks of Bayern Munich. The two full-backs Damian and Alex Sandro also actively pressed forward to participate in the attack.
Thanks to the outstanding performance of the two wingers, Inter Milan took a 2-0 lead in the first half with goals from Morata and Aubameyang.
But in the second half, Guardiola adjusted the team and quickly counterattacked. Thomas Muller and Robben scored successively and successfully equalized the score.
But the 2-2 score in the first leg is a pretty good result for Inter Milan.
Klopp said with a smile after the game that the team will wait for Bayern Munich at Inter Milan's Stadium of Honor.
This bearded man looked as if he had already secured victory.
After the game, the German media also commented that Bayern Munich's biggest problem is that the team has the ball but cannot convert it into a threat, especially after selling Lewandowski and the aging of the team's two wingers Robben and Ribery. The introduction of players cannot meet the needs of the team, and there is a feeling that there is no successor.
Bayern Munich conceded two away goals to Inter Milan at home, and the situation is undoubtedly quite dangerous.
But what is even more dangerous is the internal conflicts within Bayern Munich.
Kicker magazine revealed that the conflict between Bayern Munich's technical director Sammer and current head coach Guardiola has long been known to everyone, and the two have not even had any exchanges or communication.
"Bayern Munich and Guardiola have different ideas. This has long been known to everyone in the German football circle. The conflict and contradiction between Sammer and Guardiola is no longer a secret. There are even reports that if Guardiola's Bayern Munich is eliminated by Inter Milan in the Champions League, Bayern Munich will not rule out the possibility of firing Guardiola early."
"The conflict between the management and the head coach has also caused panic within Bayern Munich, affecting the team's preparations and matches."
In the lower half of the Champions League, Atletico Madrid defeated Paris Saint-Germain 3-1 at home. Although they gave the French Ligue 1 giants an away goal, the road to promotion was undoubtedly much smoother.
Simeone's team performed quite dominantly in this game. The three goals scored by Griezmann, Isco and Koke were impressive. Paris Saint-Germain was inferior to the Colchoneros both in terms of the scene and the score.
As for Monaco and Hamburg, the match ended with Monaco beating Hamburg 3-1 at home.
Tuchel's performance in European competitions is not ideal. He led Mainz to participate in the Europa League twice before, but both times he was eliminated in the qualifying rounds and couldn't even enter the main competition. This also resulted in Tuchel's lack of European experience.
The fact that Hamburg was able to stand out in the group stage this season has a lot to do with the lack of strength and poor performance of Manchester United and CSKA Moscow. In the round of 16, they faced Anderlecht, and Tuchel's team did not face much test.
In this match against Ronald Koeman's Monaco, Tuchel's team encountered a team with the strength of the top eight in Europe. It was basically normal to lose 1-3 away from home.
In the words of the German media, both Hamburg and Tuchel need to level up.
Fortunately, Hamburg's overall age is relatively young, and Tuchel still has enough time.
Just like the Dortmund led by Klopp, wasn’t they beaten in the first season, but performed extremely well in the second season?
In comparison, Tuchel's first season in the Champions League saw them reach the quarterfinals, which was an impressive performance.
Who dares to say that Hamburg cannot continue to perform on this basis next season?
Ronald Koeman's Monaco has indeed been quite solid this season.
On the offensive end, the team introduced Mexican striker Hernandez, who showed an amazing scoring momentum as soon as he joined the team, and his performance was no less than that of the team's top center Mitrovic.
After the introduction of Schneiderlin and Wanyama in the midfield, the strength of the entire midfield is better than before.
Koeman's outstanding ability as a leading player and rich experience in European competitions have allowed Monaco to steadily demonstrate its strength in the European arena and to firmly suppress Paris Saint-Germain in the French Ligue 1.
What is even more rare is that while Koeman achieved outstanding results, he also cultivated stars such as Kondogbia, Zouma, Marquinhos, Kurzawa, Mitrovic, Tovan and Fekir.
This season, outstanding wingers such as Carrasco have emerged, and Monaco's ability to create stars is eye-catching.
Many French media were originally expecting that if Paris Saint-Germain could beat Atletico Madrid and Monaco could beat Hamburg, the two Ligue 1 giants would meet in the Champions League semi-finals.
But once the first leg of the quarter-finals is over, Monaco has a chance to advance to the semi-finals, but Paris Saint-Germain probably has no chance.
As the results of the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals came out, major bookmakers have adjusted their odds, and fans around the world have both joy and worries.
It should be said that compared with the balance of the other three games, the big win over Real Madrid made the Saints stand out to some extent. This also made fans and media reporters all over the world exclaim again, thinking that some team should stand up and snipe the Saints, otherwise the game will completely become a personal show of the Saints.