Good morning to everyone but especially to...
REAL MADRID
Real Madrid couldn't have asked for a worse start. They also couldn't have produced a better -- or more stunning -- finish.
After going down 2-0 less than 15 minutes into the game, Real Madrid ripped off five straight goals in a 5-2 away thrashing of Liverpool in the first leg of their Round of 16 Champions League tie.
Darwin Núñez's stunning flick found the back of the net in the fourth minute, and Madrid goalkeeper Thibault Cortois' awful error resulted in an easy tap-in from Mohamed Salah in the 14th minute.Real Madrid came back with a vengeance, with the in-form Vinícius Jr. rifling one into the bottom corner in the 21st minute. Then it was Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson's turn to make a mistake, firing a clearance directly into Vinícius Jr. and the deflection going into the goal in the 36th minute.The floodgates opened in the second half. Éder Militão put Los Blancos ahead with a header in the 47th minute, and Karim Benzema added 55th- and 67th-minute goals, the French star's first tallies of this Champions League campaign.It's the first time Liverpool's ever conceded five goals in a European Cup game at Anfield. Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher did not hold back in his assessment, and our James Benge believes major questions need to be asked.
Benge: "This is a Liverpool of astounding brittleness. Fabinho used to be a step ahead of every counter, now he crashes to the deck in forlorn pursuit of the ball. Jordan Henderson and Trent Alexander-Arnold are not on the same wavelength anymore. Virgil van Dijk's imperious phase might just be over. ... A season that encompassed every game imaginable from August 2021 to May 2022 has been followed by one that is surely over before the first buds of spring. That isn't even where the trouble ends. This side has fallen from the summit so vertiginously no one could believe that it is the work of a single summer to get them back on track."Elsewhere Tuesday, Napoli cruised past Eintracht Frankfurt 2-0 behind goals from Victor Osimhen and Giovanni Di Lorenzo. The final two first legs of the Round of 16 are today, both streaming on Paramount+.
RB Leipzig vs. Manchester City (preview) (Oh, also, Kevin de Bruyne is out.)Inter vs. Porto (preview)You can see our experts' picks here, James' bold predictions here and Tom Fornelli's Corner Picks here. If you listened to him Tuesday, you put some money in your pocket.
Honorable mentions
And not such a good morning for...
Getty ImagesNATE McMILLAN AND THE ATLANTA HAWKS
The All-Star break gave the Hawks time to assess things. That turned out to be bad news for Nate McMillan, who Atlanta fired amid season-long underachievement. The Hawks are just 29-30 this season, eighth in the Eastern Conference.
That's despite the offseason acquisition of Dejounte Murray, who was expected to pair with Trae Young to form one of the league's best backcourts.
This ends a disappointing tenure for McMillan, who took over for Lloyd Pierce midway through the 2020-21 season and led the Hawks to the Eastern Conference Finals. However, they lost in the first round last season. The struggles have continued.In 19 seasons as a head coach, McMillan has nine first-round playoff exits. No. 10 seemed like the best scenario this season.Assistant coach Joe Prunty will take over in the interim. Quin Snyder reportedly could be a candidate for the full-time gig.McMillan's old-school style clashed with Young's flashy, offense-centric approach, and it led to drama between the two earlier this season. With McMillan out of the picture, Young must alter his game -- or he could be next on his way out of Atlanta, writes our Brad Botkin.
Botkin: "This isn't about Young's shooting, which is appreciably down this season and has never been as good as his reputation would suggest. This is about his continued disinterest in being an active off-ball participant. ... Young is the sun. Everything revolves around him. If he doesn't buy in, nobody will. At this point, Atlanta will have to start imagining a new life without the guy they long ago planned on leading them into what was supposed to be a bright future."
