Santiago Solari vowed to fight on, but the reign of Real Madrid in Europe is over and their season effectively is too, after they were stunned by a 4-1 defeat at home to Ajax on Tuesday.
In seven days, Madrid have been knocked out of the Copa del Rey, La Liga’s title race and now the last 16 of the Champions League, the competition they had come to believe was their own.
They had won it three times in a row, four times in the past five years, while the last time Madrid failed to reach the quarter-finals was 2010.
Photo: AFP
Solari oversaw an improvement after Julen Lopetegui was sacked in November last year, but his team, 12 points behind Barcelona in La Liga, have watched their season unravel in a week.
Madrid president Florentino Perez is now faced with deciding whether it is worth keeping his coach until the end of the season, let alone beyond the summer.
“I did not come to the club in such a difficult moment to give up,” Solari said.
He could have few complaints. Ajax’s scintillating victory confirmed a 5-3 win on aggregate and a place in the quarter-finals. On this evidence, they could go further.
Hakim Ziyech and David Neres put them two up at halftime and the excellent Dusan Tadic made it three before Marco Asensio gave Madrid hope. It lasted two minutes, as Lasse Schone sent a bending free-kick into the top corner before Nacho was sent off in injury-time.
“The week has been hard for us,” Nacho said. “We have practically said goodbye to the league, the cup and today was like a final in the Champions League.”
“I’ve never felt as sick as this, I don’t know how to explain it,” Dani Carvajal said.
Gareth Bale was on after 29 minutes for the injured Lucas Vazquez, but hit the post and then missed two good chances.
Sergio Ramos was in the stands, having earned a deliberate booking to clear a ban, believing this tie was already won.
Raphael Varane might have finished it within five minutes, but headed onto the crossbar and instead Ajax took control.
TOTTENHAM 1, DORTMUND 0
Harry Kane fired Tottenham Hotspur into the quarter-finals as his winning goal at Borussia Dortmund in Tuesday’s return leg sealed a 1-0 victory to wrap up a 4-0 aggregate success.
On Monday, Spurs coach Mauricio Pochettino had demanded they “finish the job” after beating the Bundesliga leaders 3-0 in the first leg at Wembley.
His side delivered, soaking up everything Dortmund threw at them in a one-sided first half before Kane’s goal just after the break killed off the hosts’ spirited challenge.
“It’s always difficult in these type of games, you don’t know whether to defend or attack,” said Kane, who singled out Spurs goalkeeper Hugo Lloris for praise after a string of key saves. “They had a few moments. In that first half we needed everyone, defenders blocking it, Hugo saving it; that’s what the Champions League is about — you need everybody.”
This is the first time Tottenham are in the last eight since 2010-2011, when they bowed out 5-0 on aggregate to Real Madrid.
Needing to score at least three goals, Dortmund packed their line-up with forwards as Mario Goetze, Marco Reus and Paco Alcacer — who have scored 30 goals between them — all started for the first time this season.
Dortmund flew out of the traps, pounding the Spurs defense with 10 attempts in the first half alone, restricting the Londoners to a single Son Heung-min effort and enjoying 70 percent possession.
The Spurs took the lead when Kane scored with his first chance and only his team’s second of the game.
His run split the hosts’ centerbacks, as he latched onto Moussa Sissoko’s pass and curled his shot past Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Burki.
The video assistant referee confirmed that Kane was on-side and his goal on 49 minutes subdued the crowd at Signal Iduna Park who had hoped for a miracle.
While the Spurs go marching into the last eight, Dortmund can focus on trying to prevent Bayern Munich winning a seventh straight Bundesliga title with only goal difference separating the sides.
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