Barcelona midfielder reveals how he found out about Real Madrid slipping out of UCL Top 8 | OneFootball

The final matchday of the UEFA Champions League brought serious drama in the race for qualification and the top-8, especially with the final minutes seeing several major changes.

Barcelona, for their part, qualified comfortably after winning their game over FC Copenhagen and sat in fifth place, but Real Madrid’s fortunes were not as favourable.

After all, they were placed in eighth until the closing minutes of the game when Sporting CP netted a winner over Athletic Club and pushed them to the playoffs.

Benfica then scored a fourth goal past Real Madrid through their goalkeeper, crushing any hopes of a comeback and securing their place in the playoffs against all odds.

Casado speaks on the moment

Speaking to Gerard Romero in a recent interaction, Barcelona midfielder Marc Casado touched upon when he and the team found out about Real Madrid losing and Benfica’s goalkeeper scoring against them in the final minute.

“I was leaving the stadium when the match ended, happy that we’d done our duty. It’s true that while we were doing cool-down exercises, you could hear people celebrating some goal,” he began, reliving the moment.

Casado happy Barcelona do not have to play UCL knockout playoffs. (Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)

The journalist then affirmed that those celebrations were because of the late goal scored by Sporting CP in their game, which pushed Real Madrid out of the top-8 and into the playoffs live.

“Imagine. There were also some people in the stands telling us how things were going—they were spoiling it for us.”

“When the match ended, I looked at the stands, looked at a friend who was there, and he said to me ‘4-2,’ and now they (Real Madrid) have to play [the playoffs],” he added on how he found out about Benfica’s fourth goal.

He then spoke out on the understanding dawning on him that Real Madrid, having been third on the table ahead of kickoff, were in the playoffs.

“Yeah, they have to play a few extra matches, and well, in the end, that’s how it is—you have to play playoffs, two extra matches, two extra weeks packed with games, and it’s always better to avoid that.”

Finally, the player made an open statement about how he disliked Real Madrid and would never consider the club.

“Impossible. I don’t like the white colour. Always the Blaugrana.”

Source: SPORT