Casemiro clear-eyed after progression at Liverpool: “We’re thinking about the next game in La Liga”

Real Madrid travelled to Merseyside this evening to take on Liverpool at Anfield in the quarter final second leg of the Champions League, drawing 0-0 to secure their place in the semi-final against Chelsea. Los blancos went into the game with a 3-1 lead from the first leg back in Spain last week, but were wary of the danger posed by that away goal.

Zinedine Zidane‘s men saw their bus attacked before the game, struck by a missile that broke one of the windows. The action on the pitch was furious, with Thibaut Courtois drawn into two saves from Mo Salah and James Milner in the first 15 minutes. Karim Benzema had Madrid’s best chance early doors, striking the post in the 20th minute.

Casemiro epitomised the hard-edged start to the game soon after, clattering into Milner almost immediately after being fouled and starting a minor fracas pitch-side, while Salah and Gini Wijnaldum came close before half-time.

Upon the restart, it was Roberto Firmino who tested Courtois, only to be denied by the big Belgian, while at the other end Vinicius Junior had an opening only for the chance to be smothered by his compatriot Alisson. Benzema then had another excellent chance, but couldn’t control his free header, but it was of no importance come the final whistle. Madrid had done enough.

“We knew it was going to be difficult, especially because of the rival we had,” Casemiro said post-match to Movistar in comments carried by Marca. “It’s difficult to play here but the team’s work has been fantastic. Today, everyone did their job. We knew we had the advantage but we played to win. They have a lot of intensity and a great coach, but the key lies in the work, and that’s what has determined the qualification. There’s no favourite [in the semi-final]. We’re thinking about the next game in La Liga.”