Related items

• Ancelotti lauds Real Madrid goalscorer Vinicius after first-leg double

  Carlo Ancelotti believes Vinicius Junior is constantly developing his attacking output, after the Real Madrid forward delivered again in the Champions League.

  Vinicius scored twice as Madrid drew 2-2 with Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie on Tuesday.

  Those strikes took Vinicius to 31 goal involvements (16 goals, 15 assists) in the Champions League since the start of the 2021-22 campaign, which is more than any other player in the competition in the same time period.

  Vinicius' opener came when he cut inside and latched onto an exceptional pass from Toni Kroos, and Ancelotti pointed out how the Brazil international is beginning to change how he attacks.

  Speaking to TNT Sports, Ancelotti said: "Vinicius is starting to understand how important it is for him to move inside the pitch and not only close to the line.

  "He's learned really well how to move. It was a fantastic pass from Kroos but a fantastic run from Vinicius."

  Reflecting on his team's performance, Ancelotti said: "It was an interesting game, an open game of course – as it has to be for a semi-final. I think we could play better, I don’t think we played our best and we had problems in the first half.

  "We started to put pressure on in the second half to level the game – it was much better.

  "We are comfortable with a low block but we didn’t play with intensity. With a low block you have to have intensity, you have to win duels, second balls. We were too low. We tried to change something.

  "The game was difficult at 2-1 down, but then we had the energy and character to equalise – the second part of the second half was really good."

• Champions League success does not define Bayern move, says Kane

  Harry Kane refuted suggestions Champions League glory this season will decide the success of his Bayern Munich move, after Tuesday's 2-2 draw with Real Madrid in the semi-final first leg.

  Kane scored from the penalty spot to make it 2-1 to Bayern early in the second half, just four minutes after Leroy Sane had levelled with a thunderous finish at Allianz Arena.

  Having finished with his usual ease from 12 yards, Kane became the first English player to be directly involved in 11 goals in a single Champions League campaign.

  Kane is the joint-top scorer across Europe's big five leagues in all competitions this season (43 – level with Kylian Mbappe), while the England captain now has the most combined goals and assists of any player (54 – 43 goals and 11 assists).

  Regardless of whether Bayern can overcome Madrid in the second leg next week and go all the way in the final, Kane insists his move to Germany is a long-term mission, rather than a one-year aim for success.

  When asked on TNT Sports if winning the Champions League would define his Bayern move as a success, Kane responded: "I don't think so.

  "I'm here for many years, it's not just a one-off year that I've come for. Of course, the expectation at the start of the year was to win trophies and it hasn't gone our way in the Bundesliga or the cup, but the Champions League is the biggest one of them all.

  "If we can somehow get our hands on that one, it'll be an amazing season, but there is a long way to go.

  "These are the big games under the lights [that I'm here for]. The atmosphere was incredible. I'm sure at the Bernabeu it'll be the same. It's exactly why I’ve come, I wanted to play in these big games, these big moments, and it's no bigger than next week.

  "It'll be tough, we know their history in the competition, but we can take a lot of positives from today. There's a couple of small details that we need to get right because we can get punished in a couple of quick moments, but we can take a lot from this game."

  Kane now has 401 goals for club and country, having moved past the quadruple-century mark with his double against Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday.

  Including his well-taken penalty against Madrid, the former Tottenham striker now has a personal-best 43 goals in all competitions this season as well.

  Yet his focus remains solely on the next game, with Stuttgart to come on Saturday before the return visit to Madrid.

  "It's been a good season [personally] so far, but it's always about the next game, the next big game, and it's next week, away from home against Real Madrid," he added.

  "Everything we're fighting for this year is in this competition, so we've got to find a way to get it done. It's going to be tough, the Bernabeu, Real Madrid in the Champions League, but we go there with full belief, it's 0-0 and we go there for the win."

  Kane's second-half strike on Tuesday came after Sane had cancelled out an opener from Vinicius Junior, whose late penalty then ensured the shares were spoiled at Allianz Arena.

  With the pressure on Bayern's spot-kick, Madrid's Jude Bellingham appeared to offer Kane a few words of advice – though the Bayern striker was in his own space preparing to face Andriy Lunin.

  "I don't know what he was saying," Kane added on his England team-mate's quiet word. "I saw him there, mumbling something, but I'll have to ask him what he said.

  "Once I'm in that zone I'm just trying to block everything out – I'm sure he was saying something to try and put me off. Thankfully it didn't do anything."

• Bayern Munich 2-2 Real Madrid: Vinicius' late leveller sets up winner-takes-all showdown

  Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior scored twice, including an 83rd-minute penalty, to snatch a 2-2 draw at Bayern Munich in an entertaining Champions League semi-final first leg on Tuesday.

  The Brazilian struck against the run of play when he slotted in to give the visitors the lead from Toni Kroos' defence-splitting pass after 24 minutes at Allianz Arena.

  Bayern struck twice in four second-half minutes to turn the game around, with Leroy Sane threading home a powerful shot in the 53rd minute and Harry Kane edging his side ahead with a penalty soon after.

  Madrid, however, earned a spot-kick of their own when Rodrygo was brought down and Vinicius coolly converted it to equalise, leaving this tie wide open ahead of next week's return leg.

  Facing each other for a record eighth time at this stage of the competition, it was Bayern who started well, racking up half a dozen attempts on goal by the 15th minute with Sane and Kane coming close.

  Madrid needed only one chance to score though, stunning the home crowd when Kroos sliced open the Bayern defence with a through ball and Vinicius chased it down to beat Manuel Neuer.

  Kroos almost added another himself in the 51st minute but his curled shot was palmed wide by Neuer. Instead, it was Bayern who scored two minutes later with a solo effort and shot from Sane for a deserved equaliser.

  Their comeback was complete in the just four minutes later when Jamal Musiala was brought down by Lucas Vazquez and Kane sent Andriy Lunin the wrong way to put the home side ahead.

  Madrid, chasing a 15th European Cup, levelled in the 83rd minute with Vinicius' penalty to set up a mouth-watering return leg in Madrid next week.

  The winners will face either Borussia Dortmund or Paris Saint-Germain, who meet in the second semi-final on Wednesday.