Vinícius inspires Real Madrid's five-star fight against Borussia Dortmund | Champions League

“In this chalice and in this place, anything can happen,” said Vinícius Júnior, barely audible amid the madness and all the noise after another night of it happening. Real Madrid will be Real Madrid. One hundred and forty-three days after their meeting at Wembley, the Champions League finalists met again and Borussia Dortmund scored two goals in 35 minutes, the fastest team to come here to score two goals here in almost 20 years. Real Madrid scored five goals even faster. “We went in at half-time and pissed ourselves off, but we listened, we said: Get first place, we'll be back,” the Brazilian revealed at the end, and that's how it was.

Madrid were 2-0 down, goals from Donyell Malen and Reading-born Jamie Bynoe-Gittens gave Dortmund a deserved lead. A banner at the south end proclaimed before the game that this was Madrid's crown and Madrid's cup, but by this point one was wondering if perhaps it was Dortmund's night. However, history has warned against this so many times, and it was repeated here. Goals from Antonio Rüdiger, Lucas Vázquez and a hat trick from Vinícius made it possible again, delirium took over this place, a 5-2 victory was accompanied by shouts: “This is how Madrid wins!” Well, absolutely.

In the end it was all like a clap of thunder, but the touch that started it all was wonderful, so gentle, so subtle, as if Serhou Guirassy had worn carpet slippers at the Santiago Bernabéu. He arrived from Stuttgart in the summer for 18 million euros and came here having scored seven goals in as many games, but this time he didn't want to score; Instead, with his back to Rüdiger, he received a loose ball in the penalty area, controlled it and didn't so much kick it as sweep it across the turf as it turned. The gap between Rüdiger and Ferland Mendy shrank, but not quickly enough. And there was Malen, alone in front of Thibaut Courtois opens the scoring.

The goal they couldn't score in London, Dortmund got in Madrid and soon they had a second goal, the lead doubling just after half an hour. For 18 years no one had come here and done anything to Real Madrid so quickly. Here too the goal was excellent; Again, it is true that Madrid were slow to react and were easily slashed. Julian Brandt started from a given space, found Malen on the right, who pushed past Mendy to the baseline and pulled the ball back across the six-yard box. There Gittens finished with a diagonal shot from the right wing, which Vázquez only saw when it was too late.

At 20 years and 75 days, Gittens became just the youngest Englishman to ever score against Madrid. The look on his face said what this moment meant, and now as he pointed, he thanked Malen for giving it to him. Then, with a sniper's smile, he blew out smoke from his finger guns. Eder Militão clenched his fists, covered his face, and then hit the grass, unable to believe it. In the end it would be even harder to understand, except given the inevitability of the team they faced.

Whistles sounded from the Bernabéu, which at least woke up the hosts. As if they needed something to fight against, a threat to get going, Madrid immediately created chances. Jude Bellingham had the first one. Vinícius' long spear pass hit him alone, far outside the Dortmund defense, with only Gregor Kobel standing in front of him. However, his header went straight to the goalkeeper. If this should have ended up in the net, it was hard to believe that none of the chances that immediately followed didn't.

Rodrygo controlled his chest, turned and fired a volley against the crossbar. The ball fell to Bellingham, who smashed it back in the same direction. It hit the crossbar again, bounced onto the line and out again. Where it was sent back to the line almost as quickly. This time it would have been a bizarre own goal, with Brandt sending the ball towards the goal – or perhaps even the frame again – where it was saved by Kobel. Dortmund had survived three near misses in as many seconds. If the game had started, the game was almost over in the next minute when Courtois made a great save to block Brandt's shot.

Madrid went in and out of halftime with whistles and reappearances, but they were replaced by roars We're after you now Noise that the Bernabéu makes, soundtrack to countless comebacks. Once listless, there was now life: aggression, speed, an intention. Kobel saved from Vázquez and then from Vinícius, the storm began to stir. While Malen failed at Courtois, Dortmund began to seek refuge deeper in their own area, with Nuri Sahin's decision to replace Gittens with defender Waldemar Anton only serving to bring about the siege. And when Rüdiger took a header from a cross from Kylian Mbappé in the 59th minute, the lid was removed, the volume increased, The the feeling comes back.

Oh, they're coming, okay. Two minutes later they arrived, the equalizer celebrated twice. Mbappé went down in the right penalty area and the ball went to Vinícius, who shot it into the open net. The flag was raised, the outbreak was put on hold. The wait was long but it was worth it, the goal was returned. They had played less than 20 minutes in the second half and Madrid had already taken 10 shots and didn't want to stop now; Dortmund were overwhelmed and just wished they would.

It seemed as if Dortmund had weathered the worst of the storm; In fact, for a brief moment, they actually could have won. When you play against Real Madrid, that's usually the moment when you lose your temper, and that's how it was.

Nine minutes before the end they dared to take the lead, Maximilian Beier, Brandt and Emre Can led them to the front of the field, spaces opened up in front of them. The movement went from right to left and back again, finally Beier turned near the top of the six-yard box and shot at goal, but Courtois was somehow able to save it with his foot. Forty-six seconds later, Vázquez was at the other end, firing the ball past Kobel at the near post, the finish as good as Rodrygo's run that kept the move alive. Vinícius still had time to score two more goals to add to the madness. Dortmund was ready; It wasn't Madrid. Madrid never is.