Benfica couldn’t have made it more exciting. At first the team didn’t know they needed another goal, then the goalkeeper headed José Mourinho’s team into luck.
Anatoliy Trubin, 24, has provided one of the best stories written by the Champions League in recent years. The Ukrainian goalkeeper sprinted forward for what was foreseeably the last action of the game. There was a free kick in the eighth minute of stoppage time for Benfica, which led 3-2 against Real Madrid.
A few seconds beforehand, the team apparently didn’t know that they needed one more goal to climb to 24th place in the table, which leads to the second round.
The confusion became clear when a defender clenched his fists because Trubin took the ball into his hands while it was still in his own goal.
Mourinho, players, fans – everyone is freaking out
Nobody in the red jerseys or the yellow goalkeeper jersey made any move to hurry. But then Benfica finally saw the light at the Estádio da Luz.
Ecstasy, also for José Mourinho
It became hectic, a goal was needed, Trubin rushed forward. The free kick landed precisely on his head and the ball then went into the net. Coach José Mourinho, who once worked very successfully at Real Madrid, among others, but is now at Benfica, freaked out, the players freaked out, the fans freaked out.
Maybe again against Real
Benfica reached the second round in 24th place in the table and could meet Real again there.
Madrid would have needed an equalizer to be one of the best eight teams and move straight into the round of 16. But the Royals not only conceded a goal from the opposing goalkeeper, they also had two fewer players on the pitch at the crucial moment. Shortly before, Rodrygo had become the second Real player after Raúl Asencio to receive a yellow-red card. He had shot the ball out of Trubin’s hand.
