Real Madrid 3-0 shock
Real Madrid opened a commanding 3-0 lead in their Champions League Round of 16 first leg — a result that puts Manchester City on the back foot for the return tie Champions League round of 16 recap. Madrid also faces availability issues with nine potential absentees ahead of their Elche match, and the club called up César Palacios for that squad — squad depth is suddenly a headline story for their LaLiga run-in nine absentees Palacios call-up.
Federico Valverde completed a first‑half hat‑trick, scoring in the 20th, 27th and 42nd minutes to seal the night’s decisive breakthrough espn.com. The match was staged at the Santiago Bernabéu on March 11, 2026 espn.com, with the return leg scheduled at the Etihad on March 17, 2026 uefa.com. Gianluigi Donnarumma kept Manchester City in the tie by parrying Vinícius Jr.’s second‑half penalty, denying Madrid a fourth goal on the night bolavip.com. Álvaro Arbeloa — appointed Real Madrid head coach on Jan. 12, 2026 — named César Palacios in the squad for the Elche game realmadrid.com, while the club left Kylian Mbappé, Eder Militao and Dani Ceballos out with knee, hamstring and calf issues respectively. sportsmole.co.uk
