MADRID, Oct 23 — Real Madrid fought back from two goals down as Vinicius Jr grabbed a hat-trick in a thrilling 5-2 win over visitors Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League yesterday.
In a rematch of last-season’s final, Dortmund lit up the game with a two-goal blitz around the half-hour mark from Donyell Malen and Jamie Gittens to silence the Bernabeu crowd.
However, the champions were livelier after the break and broke Dortmund’s resistance with Antonio Ruediger’s header on the hour before Vinicius equalised with a close-range strike.
Lucas Vazquez put Real ahead in the 83rd with an unstoppable strike after a counter-attack and Vinicius, with two pieces of individual Brazilian brilliance, wrapped up the win to leave his side level with Dortmund on six points from three games.
“(The secret to the comeback) was believing in ourselves. We know that at home, with our fans, anything can happen,” Vinicius, who is in contention to win the Ballon d’Or award for the best player in the world on Monday, told Movistar Plus.
“When we got to the dressing room, we were all very quiet, we only listened to the coach (Carlo Ancelotti) … and only one thing was said: ‘If we score the first goal, we’re going to come back again’. And we did.
“Thanks to the fans and to the team, who left everything on the pitch. But we have to improve and play like that from the start, otherwise the coach won’t be able to take it anymore.”
Still figuring out the ideal lineup and formation for a Real midfield missing the creative talent of Toni Kroos, who retired at the end of last season, Ancelotti reverted to his usual 4-3-3 after trying out a system with three centre-backs in an unconvincing 2-1 win over Celta Vigo in LaLiga at the weekend.
However, after a promising first half hour in which Real looked solid at the back and in control of the match, Dortmund took advantage of a lack of concentration by the home defence to score twice in the space of four minutes.
Real looked as stunned as the home fans, anxiously missing several chances, and were often exposed by counter-attacks, with goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois making brilliant saves to deny efforts from Gittens and Julian Brandt before the break.
The hosts came back better organised after the interval, showing the urgency they clearly lacked in the opening period, and got some help from two head-scratching substitutions from Dortmund manager Nuri Sahin early in the second half.
He replaced scorers Malen and Gittens with defender Waldemar Anton and holding midfielder Pascal Gross, leaving his side toothless up front, and from that point it was all downhill for the German side who succumbed to the pressure Real piled on.
Ruediger’s header and a Vinicius tap-in two minutes later had lifted the crowd and it was a matter of time until Vazquez gave Real the lead, with Vinicius capping the comeback with unstoppable strikes in the 86th and 93rd minutes.
It was the Brazilian’s third hat-trick for Real in all competitions and his first in the Champions League. — Reuters
