Raul Asencio carted off after collision with Camavinga in Champions League tie
Real Madrid centre back raul asencio was stretchered off in the second half of the Champions League play-off return leg after a heavy collision with teammate Eduardo Camavinga, an incident that interrupted the club’s 2-1 win over Benfica which secured a 3-1 aggregate passage to the Round of 16.
Collision with Eduardo Camavinga left Asencio down for five minutes
The La Fabrica product was on the turf for about five minutes after the clash with Eduardo Camavinga before medics placed him on a stretcher and carried him off the pitch. Team staff and match medics attended to the centre back on the field in the second half of the return leg of the UCL play-off.
David Alaba brought on with a quarter of an hour remaining against Benfica
With a quarter of an hour to go in the second leg against Benfica, Asencio was substituted and replaced by David Alaba. The clash that felled raul asencio came just moments after Antonio Rudiger received medical attention following a separate collision with Alvaro Carreras.
Spanish television said Asencio was taken to hospital; Arbeloa confirms and downplays severity
Spanish television said Asencio was taken to the hospital for further evaluation. Head coach Alvaro Arbeloa confirmed that the Real Madrid defender has gone to hospital but does not believe the issue to be serious. Arbeloa said: "It looks like something with the neck, it doesn’t seem serious. He has gone to the hospital, hopefully it is just a scare. The blow has been tremendous, our stomachs have shrunk. But it looks like it’s going to be nothing. "
Match outcome, Tchouameni equaliser and Arbeloa’s assessment of the game
Real Madrid booked their place in the Champions League Round of 16 after a 2-1 victory over Benfica on Wednesday, completing a 3-1 aggregate success in the play-off tie. Arbeloa said it was difficult early on but that the side improved: "In any game you’re not going to have it easy. You’re going to suffer, it’s the best competition in Europe. They pressed us, it was difficult for us to get out, there was space at the back and we didn’t take advantage of it. Until we corrected that a little after half time, and that’s when we did better. We went from strength to strength. "
Player performances, Vinicius Jr. goal and Mbappe update from Arbeloa
Aurelien Tchouameni scored Real Madrid’s equaliser on the night, and Arbeloa praised his form: "Tchouameni’s goal was very important. We’ve talked about it a lot these days, he’s at a spectacular level. If he was able to accompany, he was going to score goals. It’s the first of many he’s going to score, I hope. " Just minutes after the injury to Asencio, Vinicius Jr. scored to make the match 2-1 and take a 3-1 lead on aggregate; Arbeloa also lauded Vinicius Junior’s overall display: "He played a great game, very unbalanced, scoring goals, creating danger. He has a lot of MVPs at home so it is good for Tchouameni to get this one – he does the dirty work that is usually not recognised much. When Mbappe was there we already needed him, and now that he is not, we need him much more. He must be our leader and our reference. We have seen that he can make a difference. "
On Kylian Mbappe, who dropped out of the squad at the last minute, Arbeloa said: "I can’t say the difference between discomfort and injury. The best thing was to stop and recover. He can’t play. We hope he will be back in a few days or weeks. "
