Trailing 0-2 at half-time against Borussia Dortmund on Matchday 3 of the Champions League, Real Madrid pulled off a historic comeback to win 5-2 thanks to a hat-trick from Vinicius Jr.

Real Madrid showed two very different faces on Matchday 3 of the Champions League. Facing Borussia Dortmund, the Merengues first experienced a nightmarish first half, with the German team imposing its rhythm and taking advantage of the wide spaces left by the Madrid defence. BvB, who had already put five of their six shots on target in the first 30 minutes, took the lead with two goals in quick succession before the break.

Real, despite being badly beaten, tried to respond with a triple chance in the 37th minute, but lack of success and the solidity of the German defence kept the score at 0-2 at the break. The crowd at the Santiago Bernabéu, surprisingly quiet, had been waiting for a quick reaction after the defeat to Lille on Matchday 2.

Real Madrid’s spectacular comeback

The breakthrough came on the hour mark. In the 60th minute, Kylian Mbappé, who had been keeping a low profile until then, took advantage of a ball on the right flank to penetrate the penalty area and send a perfect cross in front of goal. Antonio Rüdiger sprang up from ambush to head the ball into the net. The German thus revived Madrid’s hopes.

Three minutes later, Real Madrid’s pressure intensified. After an incursion into the area, Mbappé was off balance, but the ball landed at the feet of Vinicius Junior. The opportunistic Brazilian scored into an empty net. Although the goal was initially disallowed, it was eventually validated after VAR intervened. Madrid were 2-2 up, and the atmosphere at the Bernabéu had changed completely.
Real Madrid, now full of confidence, continued to attack. In the 83rd minute, after Rodrygo had led the way down the right, Lucas Vázquez, well placed in the box, picked up the deflected ball and struck a right-footed shot to give Los Merengues the lead. The final masterpiece came from Vinicius Junior, who scored twice in the 86th minute after a spectacular run across the pitch. The Brazilian unleashed a powerful shot from distance before completing his hat-trick in stoppage time to seal victory for his side. After trailing 0-2, Real Madrid won 5-2 to complete a spectacular comeback and revive their European campaign.