The reign of Real Madrid in Europe is over and its season could well be too after it was stunned by a 4-1 defeat at home to Ajax on Tuesday.
In seven days, Real has been knocked out of the Copa del Rey, La Liga’s title race and now the last 16 of the Champions League, the competition it had come to believe was its own.
It had won it three times in a row, four times in the last five years, while the last time Real failed to reach the quarterfinals was 2010, in Cristiano Ronaldo’s first year at the club.
Ronaldo rescued Madrid last season in the quarterfinals and then Gareth Bale won it the trophy, but the former is gone and the latter started on the bench here, dropped again by Santiago Solari.
Solari oversaw an improvement after Julen Lopetegui was sacked in November but his team, 12 points behind Barcelona in La Liga, has watched its season unravel in a week.
Madrid president Florentino Perez is now faced with deciding whether it is worth keeping Solari until the end of the season, let alone beyond the summer.
Ajax was hard-done-by in the 2-1 first-leg defeat and dominant at the Santiago Bernabeu, its scintillating victory confirming a 5-3 win on aggregate.
Hakim Ziyech and David Neres put it two up at half-time and Dusan Tadic made it three before Marco Asensio gave Madrid hope. It lasted two minutes, as Lasse Schone sent a bending free-kick into the top corner before Nacho was sent off late on.
Bale was on for the injured Lucas Vazquez but hit the post and missed two good chances.
Raphael Varane might have finished it within five minutes but headed onto the crossbar from six yards and instead Ajax took control.
Toni Kroos, poor all night, was caught in possession from a throw-in and Dusan Tadic skipped free down the right. Tadic pulled back for Ziyech, who guided it with his left foot into the far corner.
Ajax was bouncing as Neres baffled Dani Carvajal with a pirouette in the corner and then Tadic did the same, spinning around Casemiro in midfield before teeing up the second. Neres rounded Thibaut Courtois and chipped the ball home.
The fans whistled at half-time. Madrid was no better after, creating chances but lacking composure and control. Ajax added a sumptuous, albeit controversial, third.
It worked it from right to left and then inside again, where Donny van de Beek shifted one last pass to Tadic, who whipped a sizzling shot into the top corner.
Referee Felix Brych waited for VAR, with the ball appearing to have gone out for a throw before Noussair Mazraoui slid to keep it in. The camera angle was unclear and the goal stood.
Asensio swept in Sergio Reguilon’s cross to give it hope. Erik ten Hag was seconds from bringing Schone off but his midfielder bent a free-kick into Courtois’ top corner.
Harry Kane fired Tottenham Hotspur into the quarterfinals as his winning goal at Borussia Dortmund in Tuesday’s return-leg sealed a 1-0 victory to wrap up a 4-0 aggregate success.
On Monday, Spurs coach Mauricio Pochettino had demanded they “finish the job” after beating the Bundesliga leaders 3-0 in the first leg at Wembley.
His Spurs side delivered, soaking up everything Dortmund threw at it in a one-sided first half before Kane’s goal just after the break killed off the hosts’ spirited challenge.
“It’s always difficult in these type of games, you don’t know whether to defend or attack,” said Kane, who singled out Spurs goalkeeper Hugo Lloris for praise after a string of key saves.
“They had a few moments. In that first half we needed everyone, defenders blocking it, Hugo saving it, that’s what Champions League is about - you need everybody.”
This is the first time Tottenham is in the last eight of the Champions League since 2010/11.
The results: Real Madrid 1 (Asensio 70) lost to Ajax 4 (Ziyech 7, Neres 18, Tadic 62, Schone 72) (Ajax won 5-3 on aggregate) ; Borussia Dortmund 0 lost to Tottenham Hotspur 1 (Kane 49) (Tottenham won 4-0 on aggregate) .
