Mbappe exposed for Real Madrid as dawn of BVM crippled by stupidity in brilliant Bayern defeat | OneFootball

Jude Bellingham was superb but Eduardo Camavinga helped to expose Kylian Mbappe as an 85-goal fraud as Bayern Munich squeezed through to the Champions League semi-finals after a wonderful game of football.

After 35 seconds Manuel Neuer was making the most characteristic of Manuel Neuer errors. Folly almost always follows genius when it comes to the madcap German goalkeeper, so his outstanding first-leg display made a pass straight to Arda Guler to allow the Real Madrid star to curl a first-time shot beautifully into his empty net a preordained start to draw the tie level.

Bums were barely on seats and shuffled to the edges of them from that moment on in an all-timer of a game of football, featuring a heady mix of world class skill and glorious fallibility to create the perfect Champions League quarter-final storm.

No-one, including Neuer, had any idea which Bayern player he was trying to pass to and Joe Hart was similarly perplexed by the Bayern goalkeeper’s hand in Real Madrid’s second goal to draw the tie level again.

Aleksandar Pavlovic had put Bayern’s noses back in front with a header from all of two yards from a Joshua Kimmich corner with Andrey Lunin somehow not in the picture.

But Hart’s dismay was reserved for Neuer after the Bayern captain shuffled across his line and tried to paw Guler’s brilliant free-kick away from his top corner. “I can’t believe he’s starting behind the line – he can’t fly at that and save it,” he said. It did look very odd, even by the standards of one of the most perverse goalkeepers in history.

Trent Alexander-Arnold and Eder Militao can share the blame for gifting the world’s best finisher absurd space in the box to give Bayern the lead once more. A pinpoint strike into the bottom corner after Dayot Upamecano’s pass into his sticky feet now being standard Harry Kane fare demonstrates just how ridiculous a footballer he has become as he notched his 50th goal in his 42nd appearance this season.

It was quite the night for the England lads. Alexander-Arnold was back to his quarter-back best from right-back, routinely setting Mbappe away behind Bayern’s high line and delivering one of the passes of the season to the Frenchman in the second half – drilling the ball on the run first time to him at the back post, as Mbappe volleyed straight at Neuer.

Bellingham was superb. Steven Gerrard highlighted his “aura” early in the game and it was the sort of chest-out performance that illustrates just what a laughable decision it would be for Thomas Tuchel not to start him at the World Cup. No disrespect to Morgan Rogers, but we’ve not seen him put in a performance half this good in any game, let alone against arguably the best team in world football.

He was crunching into tackles, blocking goal-bound shots, dribbling out of the press; at one point he barrelled all the way to the edge of the Bayern box having started in his own half with Kimmich quite literally hanging on to him.

It was also the first game we’ve seen Bellingham, Mbappe and Vinicius Junior really work as a trio after the England international admitted their relationship has been a “difficult” one in the build-up.

“It’s difficult, because I still feel like there’ve been many games where we’ve mixed really well,” Bellingham said in his press conference on Tuesday.

“At times, it can be difficult with two naturally left-sided players [Mbappé and Vini].

“It can be difficult when we’re all on the same side. Arbeloa’s found a balance with me on the other side a bit more. We’re fluid, we have freedom to move around, at times that can disorganise a bit, but with both of them, you have to trust in their ability… When things are right, hopefully like tomorrow. I’ve seen it before.”

The third goal will have been what all Madristas and football fans in general will have dreamed of when Florentino Perez brought the square pegs together.

Bellingham drifted a brilliant pass under pressure out to the left wing for Vinicius, who dribbled inside Jonathan Tah and found a pass for Mbappe after the striker had shown terrifying pace to breeze past Upamecano and slot past Neuer.

It was a devastating BVM goal but one ultimately in vain as Eduardo Camavinga helped to expose Mbappe as an 85-goal fraud with two yellow cards in 24 minutes.

The first was described as a “great yellow card” by Owen Hargreaves in the studio after the game as he stopped a Bayern counter-attack but the second was as amateurish as the first was professional as he delayed a restart.

Not in such an obvious way that the referee had no option but to caution him – he dribbled the ball a bit and then picked it up – and we’re almost certain Slavko Vincic wouldn’t have sent him off had he remembered he was already in his book.

The Bayern players had to remind the referee to incur the wrath of the Real Madrid players in that moment and nine minutes later when their Champions League exit was confirmed after stunning goals from Luis Diaz and Michael Olise.

It means Madrid will almost certainly go two seasons without a trophy for the first time in 16 years; the two seasons where Mbappe has been the focal point of their attack; two seasons which could see former club Paris Saint-Germain win two Champions League trophies.

There are mitigating factors, of course. Barcelona have improved. PSG’s Luis Enrique project has blossomed. But we must at the very least be open to the idea that Mbappe leaving one club to spark an improvement and joining another to trigger a downfall isn’t a mere coincidence.

He’s a Jonah. An irresistible, world class Jonah, but a Jonah all the same.