Real Madrid always seem to save their best for Europe, with Liverpool the latest victims of the Champions League’s comeback kings in a remarkable 5-2 defeat at Anfield on Tuesday.

Real’s failure to lie down and accept their fate was key to securing a 14th Champions League crown last season and it seems they have not lost their touch.

While Liverpool were in many respects architects of their own downfall, Real have a history of saving their best for when they are up against it, and the Champions League brings out the best in them.

Trailing 1-0 from the first leg in last year’s round of 16, Real came from behind to beat Paris St Germain 3-1 in the Bernabeu, before sneaking over the line in the last eight thanks to late goals against Chelsea.

Manchester City were good value for their 4-3 victory in last season’s semifinal first leg, missing a host of chances to make the win more convincing, before taking the lead in the return match in Spain.

Two last-gasp goals from Rodrygo took the tie to extra time, with Karim Benzema finishing an astonishing comeback with a decisive penalty.

Having conceded two goals inside 14 minutes at Anfield on Tuesday, Liverpool fans sensed redemption for their defeat to Real in last season’s Champions League final, with the visitors struggling to cope in a raucous atmosphere.

Karim Benzema scores Real Madrid’s fifth goal against Liverpool at Anfield. (Photo: Fantasista / Getty Images)

The first half was played at a ferocious pace, with the hosts racing into a fourth-minute lead through a superb Darwin Núñez flick – the quickest goal Liverpool have scored at Anfield in the Champions League.

The stadium erupted 10 minutes later when an horrendous miscontrol from Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois let Mohamed Salah in for the second, with the Egyptian now Liverpool’s all-time top goalscorer in European competition.

Comeback

Yet, just as they did on several occasions en route to their 14th European Cup crown last season, Real quickly turned things around, with Vinicius scoring one sublime strike and one fluke goal after another goalkeeping mistake to level the match by halftime.

There was only going to be one winner in the second half, as Real gave a lesson in how to kill a match and potentially the tie.

Liverpool were never allowed to cause any problems and get the crowd behind them, while Real put three of their four chances away in devastating fashion to stun their opponents, becoming the first team in Champions League history to come from two goals down and win by a three-goal margin.

A bullet Éder Militão header completed the turnaround for Real early in the second half, sapping the life out of Anfield in the process.

The hosts’ misery was not done there, however, as Benzema’s double ensured Liverpool shipped five goals at home for only the third time this century in all competitions.

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“It’s an important night for us, we showed personality and scored the goals we needed. We want this Champions League title,” Benzema told Movistar Plus.

“We struggled in the beginning, they started well, better than us, it was a big game. But we managed to turn things around. We are in a good position but football is tricky and we have to close the deal at home.”

“Obviously we didn’t expect to start like we did, but at 2-0 down I thought about the (Manchester) City away leg last year in the hope that we could do the same – but it turned out even better,” Real coach Carlo Ancelotti said.

“We never lost confidence and little by little we won control of the ball. The experienced players helped the youngsters a lot in that situation: Karim (Benzema), (Luka) Modrić and (Toni) Kroos saying ‘keep calm, there’s still a long way to go’, and it worked out in the end.”

It was Liverpool’s heaviest home defeat in Champions League history, eclipsing a 3-0 loss to the same opponents in 2014.

The ruthless display ensured Liverpool conceded five goals in a European game at Anfield for the first time, while it was just the third time this century they have shipped five or more goals in a home game in all competitions.

That is six defeats from the past seven clashes with Real, including in the 2018 and 2022 finals, with a second leg still to come for Jürgen Klopp’s team whose season just cannot get off the ground.

Fabinho (right) and Trent Alexander-Arnold of Liverpool look dejected after Real Madrid’s win. (Photo: Jose Manuel Alvarez / Quality Sport Images / Getty Images)

“I told the boys directly after the game, a defeat is only defeat if you don’t learn from it,” Klopp said. “If we allow this one game to be influential, we are really silly.

“Yes, we have to improve, but we have to take the good things as well. We gave all five goals away. We could have done better there, but they (Real) were obviously different.

“We go there and try to win the game. If that’s possible or not, I don’t know.”

‘Most decisive player in the world’

Vinicius Jnr is peerless when it comes to inflicting damage on opponents, Ancelotti said.

“Vinicius is the most decisive player in world football today,” he told a news conference.

“There is no player with this continuity of action. He doesn’t stop and keeps going. I hope he can continue like this.”

Vinicius has become arguably his team’s most important player after crowning his breakout season by scoring the goal that won Real Madrid a record-extending 14th European Cup title with a 1-0 win over Liverpool last year.

He is the player with most goal attempts (28) and shots on target (15) in the Champions League this season and is the most fouled player in Europe’s top five leagues (82).

Vinicius scored twice in three attempts against Liverpool on Tuesday and – at only 22 – is already the second-highest scorer against the English team in the Champions League with five goals, one behind Karim Benzema, and ahead of Didier Drogba (four) and Frank Lampard (three).

After Liverpool went 2-0 ahead, Vinicius hit back with a sublime strike and doubled his tally with a fluke second after Liverpool keeper Alisson hit the ball straight at him.

“Vinicius was brilliant as always,” Ancelotti said.

“It was an historic win, mostly because if you consider where we played and how we started the game, falling two goals behind.

“But we never backed down and kept our cool, not panicked and we turned around a very difficult game.”

After scoring 22 goals with 20 assists last season, Vinicius has already scored 18 in all competitions this campaign and was named player of the tournament at the Club World Cup in January, helping Real to secure a record-extending fifth title. Reuters/DM