UEFA Champions League: Karim Benzema dashes hopes of Liverpool's return by scoring a goal

Following a 7–0 win against Manchester United in the English Premier League, Liverpool fans were also pinning hopes on the team's historic return to the Champions League. However, Liverpool were left disappointed in the second leg of the last-16 as contenders Real Madrid once again won the match 1-0.

With this victory, Real Madrid advanced to the quarter-finals by winning both legs 6–2 on aggregate. Karim Benzema scored the only goal of the match played on Wednesday. He scored this goal in the 79th minute of the match with the help of Vinicius Junior. It was his 13th goal in the last eight matches of the Champions League knockout stage.

Real Madrid also defeated Liverpool in the final last year. What bothered Liverpool fans the most was the fact that no one scored a goal for the team during the match. Liverpool's side looked very mediocre ahead of champions Real Madrid in the first leg, far from trying to reduce the difference to three goals.

The team could not recover even at the Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid from the shock of having a difference of two to three goals within a few moments at Anfield. During the match, in the first half, the team was also trying, but in the second half, Real Madrid's team dominated and won the match by scoring a goal.

After the match, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said, 'The team needed a great performance, but he was very average. Real Madrid was a stronger team and their progress is not surprising.

In other matches, Napoli beat Frankfurt 3-0 to reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League. It is the third Italian team to reach the last eight.

Gianni Infantino re-elected as FIFA President

Gianni Infantino was unanimously re-elected as FIFA president on Thursday until 2027. There was no candidate to oppose Infantino and he held the position for another four years unanimously, instead of a formal vote at the Congress of 211 Federations.

Infantino, a Swiss lawyer, was first elected president of FIFA in 2016. At the time, FIFA was battling corruption charges. For this reason, the then FIFA President Sepp Blatter was sacked only a few months after being elected to the post.

FIFA's income increased during Infantino's tenure, while national teams got more chances to qualify for the men's and women's World Cups. Meanwhile, he also had to face opposition from European football officials.

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