Rodrygo was the man who opened the show for Real Madrid at home to Salzburg in the 7th round of the Champions League qualifying round. The Brazilian striker was the owner of the first 2 goals of the match, causing the previous confidence of the away team to disappear.
Both of Rodrygo's goals were beautiful, showing off the Brazilian star's technical qualities. In particular, the second goal, Jude Bellingham's skillful backheel, added to the visual appeal. The understanding between Bellingham and Rodrygo was clearly felt. The English midfielder stepped back a step to drag the Salzburg defense, then backheeled just in time for Rodrygo to run down and score a masterpiece.
The recent 5-2 defeat to Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup made Carlo Ancelotti wonder whether he should add another midfielder to control the ball better. If the Italian coach did this, Rodrygo would likely have to sit on the bench because he is not as influential as Vinicius, Mbappe and Bellingham.
Salzburg are not Barcelona and when given the chance to prove his coach wrong, Rodrygo did very well. Ancelotti can breathe a sigh of relief because now his attack is very strong and competitive, wanting to show itself.
Bellingham, who assisted Rodrygo's second goal, had a great day despite not scoring. In contrast to his scoring sprees last season, Bellingham has been playing deeper this season with the arrival of Mbappe. It wasn't until November 2024 that the English midfielder scored his first goal in La Liga. In the Champions League, "Little Be" had to wait until the win over Atalanta in December 2024 to score.
However, Bellingham was not sad because of that, he even showed his enthusiasm when Ancelotti assigned him a new task. Against Salzburg, Bellingham played as the center of the team. He was the bridge between the Luka Modric - Dani Ceballos pair in midfield. The 21-year-old star was also the point of distributing the ball to the trio Rodrygo, Mbappe and Vinicius Jr.
Bellingham completed 43 passes and created three big chances in the first half. After Mbappe and Vinicius scored early in the second half, with victory already in hand, Bellingham slowed down to help his team keep possession for as long as possible. When he left the pitch in the 64th minute, the England midfielder received a standing ovation from the Bernabeu.
Vinicius received the MVP title with a good performance, accompanied by a double in the second half. However, his show at home left a bit of a mark with a yellow card for diving in the first half. That yellow card was the third time Vinicius had received in the qualifying round, meaning he would miss the final match against Brest.
Leaving that mark behind, the Brazilian star made the Bernabeu stadium explode with a double in the second half, all of which were masterpieces.
As for Mbappe, after a period at the beginning of the season when he was not in tune with the new style of play and formation, the French striker has now returned to his usual stormy image. His goal to make it 3-0 is the image that Real Madrid fans have always been waiting for. A sprint from behind the opponent's defense like tearing the wind, stealing the ball and scoring while everyone was still stunned.
The victory over Salzburg secured Real Madrid a place in the play-off group to secure a ticket to the round of 16. However, in Europe's most prestigious playground, Los Blancos have never been concerned about overcoming any challenges because from the beginning they set the goal of defending the title.
