Capello full of praise for Beckham as Real edge Bayern
Real Madrid coach Fabio Capello was full of praise for English veteran David Beckham after the man he banished for a month helped set up two goals in Tuesday's 3-2 Champions League round of 16 first leg win.
Real Madrid coach Fabio Capello was full of praise for English veteran David Beckham after the man he banished for a month helped set up two goals in Tuesday's 3-2 Champions League round of 16 first leg win.
Beckham's performance gave Real an even chance of reaching the Champions League quarter-finals if they can produce another battling show in Bavaria in the return.
"Beckham played very well, He was very important, creating two goals tonight," Capello enthused.
"When he has been in the team his play has been of a very high standard," said Capello, regretting the midfield star was suspended for Saturday's league game with Atletico Madrid after a red card against Betis last week.
The Italian had dropped Beckham in January on learning the player was not extending his contract and instead opting to join US outfit LA Galaxy in the summer.
After all-time tournament top scorer Raul scored the opener on ten minutes from close range and Lucio had nodded the equaliser for Bayern, Beckham's creative instincts came to the fore as he set up Raul's second, poking in after Ivan Helguera had headed on Beckham's corner.
Within minutes Beckham's freekick and a Helguera touch set up Ruud Van Nistelrooy to beat Bayern keeper Oliver Kahn from close range for his fifth goal of the competition and 52nd in his career.
However, a goal two minutes from the end by former Barcelona man Mark Van Bommel gave the Germans a potentially priceless second away goal as they look to turn things around on home soil in a fortnight.
"I think the second goal gave us hope," said Bayern coach Ottmar Hitzfeld, installed three weeks ago in place of the sacked Felix Magath with Bayern going through a terrible patch of poor league form.
"We have lots of work ahead in the next couple of weeks if we are to have a chance of knocking out Real," Hitzfeld insisted.
"Real got into their stride quicker especially in midfield and we were too passive," he complained.
The match pitted two of the most successful sides in the history of European football against each other, Real's nine titles a record and Bayern's four bettered only by the Spaniards, AC Milan's six and Liverpool's five.
But the form of Real and Bayern this season has been mediocre and both currently place fourth in their domestic leagues.
Facing the prospect of Capello carrying out a reported threat to resign with the club likely headed for a fourth year without a trophy, Real dug in hard after Lucio's goal until Van Bommel caught them napping with a ferocious drive just when it looked as if the two-goal cushion was safe.
There was no doubting the hosts' appetite as they snapped into every tackle in a first half showing by a side knowing it had to win against a side which appears to have forgotten how to.
As Real began to look comfortable on the ball for the first time in weeks, their rivals resorted to strong-arm tactics and Martin Demichelis was booked for a late foul on Guti.
After the first-half flurry of goals Bayern came out with renewed steel and Roy Makaay came close with a low effort.
Capello threw on Robinho for Franco-Argentine Gonzalo Higuain and the Brazilian produced some incisive runs as Real sought to maintain their impetus.
Hitzfeld then withdrew ineffective German forward Lukas Podolski for Peruvian Claudio Pizarro.
But it was Real who almost made it four with Kahn stretching to touch over a Beckham deadball special.
Pizarro should have pulled it back to 3-2 with 12 minutes remaining, Iker Casillas making a superb reaction stop diving to his left, before Van Bommel's powerful strike left him helpless.