Real Madrid hand Celtic harsh UCL lesson despite Benzema blow - 5 talking points

Real Madrid began their defence of the Champions League with a convincing 3-0 win over Celtic in Glasgow on Tuesday.

The Hoops were dominant up until the half hour mark before Carlo Ancelotti's side got into their stride. It took until the start of the second half for Los Blancos to open the scoring, however, with Vinicius Jr slotting home. This was before goals from Luka Modrid and Eden Hazard sealed the points on the opening night of the group stages.

In the other game of the group, Shakhtar Donetsk romped to a shock 4-1 victory over RB Leipzig, with former Celtic flop Marian Shved scoring twice, while Mykhalio Mudryk and Lassina Traore also found the net. Real are still expected to dominate the group and started it as they mean to go on with a fantastic win at Celtic Park.

Here are five talking points from the game.

Intense Celtic start

The Hoops began the game the brighter of the two sides and should've taken an early lead. Giakoumakis layed the ball off to Abada, who hit the ball first time inside the area but his strike flew just wide via a deflection off Eder Militao. Then, Jota's stunning pass found Abada but his effort was tame and easily held by Thibaut Courtois.

But Celtic's best chance within the opening 25 minutes came when Callum McGregor struck the woodwork. The ball fell to the Scotsman on the edge of the box but his viscous curling effort cannoned off the post and away to safety.

It was a great start from the Hoops, although Postecoglu would've been disappointed that they didn't make the most of their early pressure by scoring a goal... something which ultimately, proved critical.

Crackling atmosphere

The Celtic Park atmosphere is renowned to be raucous, especially on huge Champions League nights, and it was no different against Real Madrid. The Hoops haven't qualified for the group stages of the competition since 2017/18, but would automatically progress into the group phases after winning the Scottish Premiership. A UEFA change meant Celtic didn't have to go through the qualifying rounds, with second-place Rangers taking their place instead.

And the Celtic fans made the most of playing their first Champions League game for almost five years, creating a crackling atmosphere from the get-go, including during the anthem. Loud chants of "Celtic" rang around the stadium throughout, while they also made it hostile whenever Real had the ball.

Benzema off injured

There were some doubts about whether Karim Benzema would pass a late fitness test to play in Real's trip to Glasgow, with Carlo Ancelotti revealing the Frenchman may have to 'rest some matches'. However, last season's Champions League top scorer was named in the Los Blancos side to take on Celtic.

But he lasted just 29 minutes before pulling up with what looked like a knee injury. Benzema hobbled for about a minute and went down holding his knee, with Ancelotti taking no risks as Eden Hazard came on in his absence. During his time on the pitch, Benzema's movement caused issues for the Celtic back-line and had one opportunity through Vinicius' cross but he couldn't keep his effort down.

Real click into gear

After a difficult start, the Champions League holders clicked into gear as the game wore on. Vinicius was at the heart of everything Real did well and he almost gave them the lead on 34 minutes but Joe Hart made a terrific save as he ran through on goal. Hazard then should've scored on the stroke of half-time, but he failed to hit the target from five yards out.

Real continued to press for an opener and were rewarded for their persistence as Vinicius scored a wonderful opener on the hour mark. A lightening counter-attack saw Federico Valverde slide the ball across the six yard box to Vinicius, who coolly slotted the ball into the bottom corner. It was a finish of a man in form, with Vinicius already on four goals from just six matches this season.

It didn't take Real long to double their advantage as they hit Celtic for a sucker punch. Modric was the man to put the finishing touch on a devastating move, as he tucked the ball into the corner with the outside of his foot.

Hazard breaks goal drought

It has been a disastrous couple of seasons for Hazard since his big-money move to Real, with the 31-year-old struggling with injuries, form and illness during his time at Santiago Bernabau so far.

However, Hazard made quite an impact when he was introduced off the bench at Celtic Park for the injured Benzema. He scored Real's third, tapping the ball home from close-range after an excellent pull back from Dani Carvajal. It was Hazard's first goal since scoring in the Copa del Rey back in January.

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