VinÃcius Júnior sent his low shot into the net and rushed to the sideline, jumping over the barrier and going into the stands to be quickly engulfed by Real Madrid fans. It was a scene that wouldn't have been possible during the last 18 months. With goals by VinÃcius Júnior and debutant Eduardo Camavinga and a hat trick by Karim Benzema, Madrid twice came from behind before comfortably beating Celta Vigo 5-2 in the Spanish league on Sunday.
The game marked Madrid's return to the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium more than 18 months after it was closed because of the coronavirus pandemic and a massive renovation project. "It was a special night for us," Benzema said. "I always say that we need the support of the fans and today they gave all they had to help us again."
The remodeling of the Bernabéu is not expected to finish until 2022 but the stadium reopened to a limited crowd of 19,874 in the first match at the venue since March 1, 2020, when Madrid defeated Barcelona 2-0 with Zinedine Zidane still as its coach. Defending champion Atlético Madrid earlier also needed to rally to avoid a disappointing result in a milestone match, scoring two late goals - including one in the ninth minute of stoppage time - to beat Espanyol 2-1 in Antoine Griezmann's first game back since a stint with Barcelona.
Madrid took advantage of the prohibition on spectators in stadiums because of the pandemic to accelerate the construction work at the Bernabéu while it played its home matches at the small Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium in the club's training complex. It played three straight away matches in the first three rounds this season to get the venue ready for crowds again. The seating areas that are still not available to the public, mostly in the lower sections of the stadium, were blocked off and covered up, and there was a lot of construction work still visible inside and outside the venue. The huge structures that will hold the stadium's new retractable roof are already in position.
On the field, it was Celta that opened the scoring with Santi Mina finding the net from inside the area after a defensive mistake by Madrid only four minutes into the match. Benzema equalized with a shot from inside the area after a pass by Federico Valverde, but Celta retook the lead in a breakaway in the 31st with Franco Cervi finding the net from close range.