Vinicius Jr. powers Madrid's latest comeback in UCL final rematch vs. Dortmund
Real Madrid once again made the extraordinary look routine Tuesday, fighting back from 2-0 down at halftime to beat Borussia Dortmund 5-2 in a rematch of last season's Champions League final.
Vinicius Junior powered Madrid's comeback effort with a hat-trick that helped cement his case for the Ballon d'Or.
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It's only the second time Madrid have won a Champions League home game when trailing by two goals. They also beat Roma 4-2 in September 2004 after conceding the first two goals.
Donyell Malen and Jamie Gittens silenced the Santiago Bernabeu with strikes four minutes apart in a first half that exposed Madrid defensively. Fans whistled the players off the pitch as they broke for halftime. But as they often do, the reigning European champions regained control, scoring five times in the second period to complete the turnaround.
Antonio Rudiger and Lucas Vazquez also found the net as Madrid improved to 2-0-1 to start their Champions League campaign.
"We know that when we are at home, with our fans, anything can happen," Vinicius told Spanish TV channel Movistar. "We went in (at half-time) very quiet and just listened to the coach. We said just one thing: If we scored the first, we would come back once again. And we made another comeback. Thanks to the fans and the whole team who gave everything."
Carlo Ancelotti's side stumbled in Lille in its previous match and looked sluggish from the start against Dortmund. Both teams have been off their best form since reaching the final, which Madrid won 2-0 to clinch a record-extending 15th European crown.
Lucas Vazquez struggled down the right and was at fault for both of Dortmund's goals, first losing possession ahead of Malen's 30th-minute strike and then losing Bynoe-Gittens as he raced in behind and crashed home the visitors' second.
But Madrid suffocated Dortmund after the interval, outshooting them 17-2. Rudiger cut the deficit in half in the 60th minute with a header off Kylian Mbappe's cross, and Vinicius jumped on a stray ball in the penalty area to tie it two minutes later. Vazquez redeemed himself with the game-clinching goal in the 83rd, and Vinicius struck twice more to add gloss to yet another heroic effort.