Real Madrid needed a Gonzalo Garcia’s dramatic stoppage-time winner to edge out Leganes and qualify for the semi-finals of the 2025 Copa Del Rey, MySportDab reports.
A thrilling quarterfinal matchup against the Southwest neighbours saw Los Blancos nearly settle for a draw at full time before Garcia’s stunner did the magic.
As expected, the visitors aced the game with a superior performance from the start.
They dominated possession, recorded more offensives, and more targets on goal than their opponents.
It was not long before they took the lead via a brilliant strike by legendary Luka Modric in the 18th minute.
Seven minutes after Luka Modric’s goal, Brazilian young attacking sensation Endrick doubled the lead for the visitors.
From the foregoing, it was thought the La Liga and European champions would ace the game easily as expected against the lowly-rated opponents but Leganes later pulled a dramatic comeback that defied expectations.
It all started nine minutes after Endrick’s and Real Madrid’s second goal.
Young defender prospect Ramon had his nightmare start for Los Blancos as he gave away a penalty that led to Leganes’ lifeline goal due to a reckless tackle.
24-year-old Leganes midfielder Juan Cruz made no mistake, coolly slotting it in to halve the deficit for the home side.
14 minutes into the second half, the Spanish winger was on target again for Leganes, scoring a sensational goal to tie the score dramatically.
Juan Cruz’s brace was nothing short of heroic, setting the stage for a nervy finish to the game but Los Blancos weren’t ready to settle for a tie.
At the stroke of stoppage time, Gonzalo Garcia’s clutch goal finally put the stubborn El Lega to the sword, helping Real Madrid progress to the last four of the competition.
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