Raul closes in on record as Real show their relief

Real Madrid forward Raul is just one goal away from equalling the all-time European Cup scoring record after sparking his team's fightback from 2-0 down to salvage a draw from their visit to Dynamo Kiev.

A loss could well have forced the Spanish side, who have conceded three goals in each of their last two European away games, to depend on the results of matches between other Group B teams to make it into the last 16 knockout round.

But Raul got them back into Wednesday's match with a cool finish for his 48th Champions League goal to put him one behind the competition record held by Alfredo Di Stefano, the Argentine who was the lynchpin behind Real's first five European Cup wins.

However, Raul shrugged off his own performance and focused on how important it was to come away with a point.

"The goal is not the important thing...the most important thing is that our chances in the Champions League still depend on us," he said after the match.

Real, Kiev and Leverkusen are level on seven points in Group B with two matches left, while AS Roma are already out of contention with just one point.

Kiev had produced a powerful early onslaught in front of a capacity 83,000 crowd that left Madrid bewildered and outclassed as the home side took a two-goal lead after 23 minutes.

They faded slightly as the game went on, however, and Raul ignited hopes of a comeback when he netted in the 38th minute after a neat pass from Figo.

Morocco's Badr El Kaddouri tripped Ronaldo in the box just before halftime and Figo converted the penalty to equalise.

"Dynamo started out very strong in attack and defence, with individual marking that did not leave us much room but later... (when) it was impossible (for them) to maintain the rhythm of the start, we had opportunities to carry the game," added Raul.

Defender Ivan Helguera agreed. "The point (from the draw) is very valuable because it means that we depend on ourselves."

After staving off a defeat that would have dealt a blow to their European hopes, Real were unable to get a winner despite being more of a threat in the second half.

"I'm happy with the team's reaction but not the result. I think we deserved to win," said coach Mariano Garcia Remon.

Real fullback Roberto Carlos was confident they could dominate their next match against Bayer Leverkusen despite the patchy start in Kiev.

"I'm sure our fans will be happy because we fought from beginning to end. We have to beat Leverkusen somehow or other. We have the team to do it," he said.