and we find ourselves at one of the most iconic venues in world football the santiago bernabeu
here on the spanish capital madrid derek ray here on the commentary box joined as always by former
arsenal and england fullback lee dixon and this is where it all starts in the uefa champions league
the group stage and match day one my goodness so much to look forward to it's real madrid and
they face rangers well thank you derek with being big favorites complacency can be a problem you've
got to use that to your advantage you're playing a home side as expected to go through can they
put the pressure on in the first 20 minutes and hold out and then try nick the game in the second
half
and here's the starting 11 for real madrid tebow courtois is the keeper
of choice david alaba plays alongside nacho fernandez in central defense
tommy course plays with casemiro in the center of the pitch and leading the line today is karim
benzema
so
well here's the starting eleven for rangers
we think four three three but maybe with a slight difference yeah very narrow look about
the team up front and narrow in midfield so both fullbacks should be getting extra
pay this week because a lot's going to be asked of him going forward and defensively
it's the opening match day champions league group stage match day one underway
aiden azar
the ball with luka modric lucas vasquez
and taken away
the annie [ __ ] understandable that there's considerable attention surrounding tony cross
given his overall ability what sort of performance will we see from him
well if i'm a teammate of this lad i want to get the ball to him as often as i can
because he's a safe pair of hands giving the ball normally something
happens link up play between the different departments of the team is second to none
just the clearance that was called for
and slipped through beautifully and azhar's in here
can he finish an early goal it is the ideal opening
well as we can see again here he knows exactly what he's doing and
kids all the defenders with the cutback and then from there the keeper had little chance
two on one left completely exposed and it made for a simple finish in the end
and the match back in business real madrid with the advantage
davis and in possession morenos he's protecting it well
they get the ball once more turning inside where is he going to go really good challenge
now he must favor the cross casimiro the ball with lukasz vasquez
of course
now azar casimiro and he wasn't messing around with the clearance
steven davis davis bonner badisitch ryan kent has it
so a throw in here options in the center
another good tackle casimiro his pass gobbled up
it looks promising
well they keep working away looking for passing lanes still not clear
and problem solved for now room to roam on the wing
ranges possession not a problem but they have to create more they have to be more positive
the final third play has been slow too predictable
stephen davis davis looking for that final pass and for that chance to level the game
and the first half is in the history books here at the bernabeu
i think most fans would be pretty happy with this man's display so far
well derek he certainly was a good 45 minutes from the lad
obviously got the goal to give him the lead but he's looked very very lively as well
and so the second half of this champions league group stage match day one contest commences
kent
arrebo steven davis well high marks for that pass
what can real do from this position oh he fancies us chances goodness gracious me how
about that foot technique you can't strike them much better than that just look at this
the keeper wasn't expecting it certainly wasn't he was flat-footed he's gone in what a strike though
let's have another view of that goal
well there's nothing better for a manager when a plan comes together
total satisfaction so toenail now
in possession marcelo
lucas vasquez now with benzema that's a routine take
crossing possibilities possession and patience the watch words
tony course and return to him is this the moment a wonderful
intervention james tavernier stephen davis
and it's tabardia and what can they do to stop him running at them promising attack this
ryan jack and it's with davis and the ball with jack
effective challenge over the touch line for a throw-in
nacho fernandez
well real have not had too much of the ball but again we've seen it before
we'll see it again their counter attack play has been absolutely fantastic
pace really hurts defenses and they've got that in abundance and now they have the ball back
inside the last quarter of an hour oh it with a chance
it has to be surely an important challenge but they must remain organized
terrific defending to stop them progressing kamada
and it's with davis
and that was a very fine read
james tavernier and fail to keep himself on side unfortunately both managers deciding this
is the time to change things around both teams going to the bench
and it's a case of just five minutes left
kareem benzema now casemiro
he has time to play us over casimiro well read to put an end to that attack
and we will have just one additional minute is it going to end up being productive for them
so full time it is under morale boosting three points on the board to begin the european campaign
yeah really really strong start that's what you need but with five games to go very important
you stay in the now one game at a time derek bit of a cliche a lot of positivity where
tony cross is concerned your assessment of his performance lee well that was a really really good
performance from the lad and a goal to boot really delighted with that goal i'm sure he is