Real Madrid still alive, says hat-trick star Benzema as PSG crumble

Madrid (AFP) – Karim Benzema said Real Madrid showed they are still “alive” by completing a thrilling comeback to defeat Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday and reach the Champions League quarter-finals.

Madrid trailed 2-0 on aggregate when Kylian Mbappe put PSG in front at the Santiago Bernabeu but Benzema scored a stunning second-half hat-trick, including two goals in two minutes, to send his team through.

“Every game is a final now for us in the Champions League and La Liga but today we showed that Real Madrid is alive,” Benzema said afterwards.

“We know PSG like to have the ball. We started well, we tried to score and in the second half we won the match with our mental strength,” Benzema added.

At 34 years old, Benzema is the oldest player to score a hat-trick in Champions League history.

“We won a very difficult game, which got a lot more complicated after Mbappe’s goal,” said Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti. 

“We suffered a lot. Then we pushed higher which was what we wanted to do.

“We scored the first goal and from there everything changed. The fans pushed us and we believed more, more and more. It was a spectacular night.”