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Real Madrid‘s Champions League title defense will have to take a detour through the play-offs after they failed to secure an automatic spot in the round of 16. Despite a comfortable 3-0 win over Brest in France, results elsewhere meant Carlo Ancelotti’s side finished 11th in the league phase.
A Rodrygo double and Jude Bellingham’s strike sealed the win for the reigning champions, who needed a victory to stand a chance of an automatic place in the knockout stages. Rodrygo’s opener came after 27 minutes, the Brazilian cutting inside a defender before striking a low effort in off the far post for his 10th goal in his last 10 matches.
Madrid suffered a scare when Ludovic Ajorque’s shot was deflected off Aurelin Tchouameni, but the goal was ruled out for offside after a VAR review. Instead, Bellingham made it 2-0 after 57 minutes, finishing from Lucas Vazquez’s cutback, and Rodrygo added a third by turning in the rebound from a Marco Bizot save.
However, victories for Bayer Leverkusen, Lille, and Aston Villa meant it was mathematically impossible for Madrid to reach the top eight. They will now face one of Manchester City or Celtic in the play-offs, with the draw to be made on Friday.
Brest, meanwhile, will face Benfica or Paris St-Germain in the next round after finishing 18th in the league phase. Despite a tough draw, Eric Roy’s side made a blistering start to their debut Champions League campaign, going unbeaten in their first four league stage matches.
Madrid’s slow start to the campaign, which saw them lose three of their first six matches, has ultimately cost them automatic progress to the round of 16. Their attack, which has found its touch in recent games, scoring 20 goals in their last five matches, now seems too little, too late.
Rodrygo, in particular, has found his scoring form, netting 10 goals in his last 10 matches. However, his drought earlier in the campaign, which saw him go two and a half months without a goal, has had a lasting impact on Madrid’s Champions League campaign.
Similarly, Karim Benzema’s departure and Kylian Mbappe’s adaptation to his new role as a central number nine have caused teething problems for Madrid. The damaging loss at Liverpool earlier in the campaign has also had a lasting impact, ultimately costing them automatic progress to the round of 16.
Madrid will now have to navigate an extra two play-off games to defend their title. While they will be favoured to reach the last 16 and go further, it will be a sore point for Europe’s most successful side that they have to take this road at all.
