Real Madrid, who looked to be in dire straits after winning only one point in their first two Champions League group stage matches, got back on track in a 0-1 win in Istanbul on Tuesday night.
The 2017 and 2018 Champions League winners took down a feisty Galatasaray side by the minimum to get back on track for qualification to the knockout stage of play.
German midfielder Toni Kroos scored the game-winning goal in the 17th minute of action after being set up by a brilliant pass by Eden Hazard. The veteran midfielder rocketed a shot into the top corner of the net that Galatasaray keeper Fernando Muslera could do nothing to stop.
Despite the two teams combining for 38 total shots (27 for Madrid and 11 for Galatasaray) and 16 shots on goal (13 for Madrid and 3 for Galatasaray), this was the only goal scored in the tense match.
Los Blancos’ defense was able to hold on to keep Galatasaray out of the net despite an offense that kept pushing and a rowdy crowd that did its best to give a burst of home-field advantage to the hosts.
Real Madrid now finds itself with 4 points in Group A of the competition, which puts them five points behind PSG, who has completed a perfect first half of the group stage.
