When it mattered most, the expected difference-makers delivered. Harry Kane lit up the Santiago Bernabeu with the goal of the night – a precise, right-footed curler from outside the box that nestled into the bottom-left corner beyond Andriy Lunin – to seal Bayern Munich’s 2-1 win over Real Madrid in the Champions League quarterfinal first leg yesterday. Michael Olise set up Kane for Bayern’s second after Luis Diaz had given the visitors the lead, while Kylian Mbappe pulled one back in the second half for the home side. Kane’s strike was his 49th in just 41 matches across all competitions this season, keeping him well ahead in the European Golden Shoe race, with Mbappe on his trail with 39 in 37. It was also Kane’s 11th Champions League goal this term, second only to Mbappe’s 14.
Bayern’s victory was their first over Real since April 2012, ending a nine-game winless run against the record 15-time UCL champions in the competition (D2 L7).
This was only the sixth time Real have lost the home first leg of a European Cup/Champions League knockout tie, and the first since their 2-1 loss to Manchester City in the 2019-20 round of 16. They failed to progress in each of the previous five such ties.