Moldovan Madness in Madrid!

Real Madrid suffer 1-2 home defeat against Moldovan minnows. A single Benzema penalty is not enough as Real suffer an embarrassing 1-2 home defeat to the champions of Moldova!

Sheriff Tiraspol produced one of the great UEFA Champions League (UCL) upsets of all time, as the competition’s least experienced club upstaged and outplayed the 13-time European champions Real Madrid at the Bernabeu.

Sebastien Thill grabbed victory for Yuriy Vernydub’s debutants with a stunning last-minute strike, which sparked scenes of delirious celebration from the Moldovan champions.

Earlier, Jasurbek Yakhshiboev’s first-half goal had given them the lead. It was a stunning downwards header from a beautiful Cristiano da Silva cross that gave Thibaut Courtois in the Madrid goal no chance.

Then Karim Benzema made the score 1-1 with a penalty for Carlo Ancelotti’s team. The awarding of the penalty was perhaps a bit dubious. There didn’t seem to be much in Addo and Peixoto Costanza’s challenge on Vinicius Jr, but after a VAR check, it was decided that there was sufficient contact on the Madrid forward.

However, Thill’s goal was a fine way to seal an incredible victory. The Luxembourg international’s half-volley made the home fans silent, as it flew past Thibaut Courtois, with the clock reading 89 minutes.

“It’s the best and most important goal of my career, that’s for sure. The side were so brave with how we played and luckily enough I was able to score a bit of a stunner. After this match, we all went crazy. There are a lot of foreigners in the club, we come from all types of countries. It’s our strength,” Thill said after the game.

This was not at all what Real had planned, as the Bernabeu hosted UCL football for the first time in 580 days. Real were humbled by the champions of a nation not commonly associated with footballing prowess and the shouts of the Sherrif fans were the soundtrack to this unbelievable upset!