Mbappe, Vinicius and Bellingham on target as Real Madrid beats Atalanta 3-2. Liverpool wins again
Sports
Bayer Leverkusen is second after a 1-0 win over Inter Milan
BERGAMO (AP) – Real Madrid’s big stars turned on the style to revive the Spanish giant’s faltering Champions League title defense on Tuesday.
Galacticos Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham all scored in a thrilling 3-2 win at Italian league leader Atalanta. But Madrid still had to ride its luck as Mateo Retegui fired over from in front of goal in stoppage time when handed a golden chance to level the game.
It was only Madrid’s third win in the competition’s revamped league phase and leaves the 15-time champion in the unseeded playoff positions in 18th place.
“It’s a very important win. Not everyone wins here. We suffered and competed. In the Champions League, you have to suffer,” Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. “It’s still difficult to finish in the top eight, but we have two games left to earn points.”
Six-time champion Liverpool leads the way after maintaining its perfect record in Europe this season with a 1-0 win against Girona.
Like Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain also picked up a much-needed win, beating Salzburg 3-0 to sit in the last playoff spot in 24th place.
Bayer Leverkusen is second after a 1-0 win over Inter Milan, while Aston Villa beat Leipzig 3-2 and is third.
The top eight teams advance directly to the round of 16. Positions nine to 24 face a playoff to reach the next phase.
