On February 24, Real Madrid won 0-1 over Atalanta in the first leg of the round of 16 of the Champions League 2020/2021, thanks to a goal by Ferland Mendy in the 86th minute. Now , the meringues will look to take advantage of the first game and, as a local, will wait to get the pass to the next round of the Champions League.
However, despite having the score in favor, the white box knows that it will not be an easy match, as this Tuesday will receive the set of Gian Piero Gasperini, the reference in attack is Luis Fernando Muriel, Colombian striker who is in goal-scoring streak and hopes to be the hero of the round of 16.
Precisely before this vibrant return match, the spotlight is on two key players: Karim Benzema and Luis Fernando Muriel. Both the Frenchman and the Colombian are going through a great moment, for which their goals will be the weapon of each of the teams to seek the classification. Here are their numbers.
Luis Fernando Muriel
While in the first leg Luis Fernando Muriel did not have many clear goal options, the Atlantic’s sporting present allows him to dream of Atalanta with a historic result in a crucial return match.
At 29 years old, the coffee gunner is three goals away from equaling his best scoring season in Serie A (2019/2020: 19 goals in 41 PJ). Muriel currently has 16 goals and seven assists in this competition, in addition to two goals in the Champions League and one in the Italian Cup (19 goals and 9 assists in total).
With an average of one goal every 80 minutes (all competitions), the former Deportivo Cali has an exceptional season in Europe, being the key man in the offensive of ‘The Goddess’. However, Gasperini also has Duván Zapata, who has 13 goals and 12 assists (all competitions) and is the ideal complement for Muriel on the way back.
2020-2021 season numbers
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A league: 25 games played, 16 goals and 7 assists. 967 minutes played.
Champions League: 6 games played, 2 goals. 268 minutes played.
Italy Cup: 4 games played, 1 goal and 2 assists. 281 minutes played.
Total: 35 games played, 19 goals and 9 assists. 1,516 minutes played.
Karim Benzema
With 20 goals so far this season, Karim Benzema, in addition to being a leader in Al locker room, is the star player in the development and operation of the team led by Zinedine Zidane.
The Frenchman was not in the first leg due to injury, but after recovering satisfactorily, the striker, who is one of the captains of the team, returned with goals and in the last game of the whites for the League of ‘Spain, was in charge of giving victory to his team with two goals.
2020-2021 season numbers
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The league: 23 games played: 15 goals and 5 assists. 2,034 minutes played.
Champions League: 5 games played: 5 goals. 391 minutes played.
Super Cup: 1 game played: 1 goal. 88 minutes played.
King’s Cup: 1 game played. 43 minutes.
Total: 30 games played, 20 goals and five assists. 2,556 matches played.