Real Madrid still alive, says Benzema as Ancelotti hails 'magical night' in Champions League

Karim Benzema said Real Madrid showed they are still "alive" by completing a thrilling comeback to defeat Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday and reach the Champions League quarter-finals. Madrid trailed 2-0 on aggregate when Kylian Mbappe put PSG in front at the Santiago Bernabeu but Benzema scored a stunning second-half hat-trick, including two goals in two minutes, to send his team through. "Every game is a final now for us in the Champions League and La Liga but today we showed that Real Madrid is alive," Benzema said afterwards. "We know PSG like to have the ball. We started well, we tried to score and in the second half we won the match with our mental strength," Benzema added.

Read AlsoKarim Benzema hat-trick sees Real Madrid knock PSG out of Champions League

Real Madrid pulled off one of the great Champions League comebacks on Wednesday as Karim Benzema scored a breathtaking hat-trick to upstage Kylian Mbappe and dump Paris Saint-Germain out in the last 16.

At 34 years old, Benzema is the oldest player to score a hat-trick in Champions League history. "We won a very difficult game, which got a lot more complicated after Mbappe's goal," said Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti. "We suffered a lot. Then we pushed higher which was what we wanted to do. "We scored the first goal and from there everything changed. The fans pushed us and we believed more, more and more. It was a spectacular night."

Read AlsoChampions League: Pochettino criticises referee after PSG collapse against Real Madrid

Paris Saint-Germain coach Mauricio Pochettino said the decision not to give a foul against Karim Benzema for Real Madrid's first goal "changed everything" in his team's Champions League implosion on Wednesday.

He added: "We suffered, but we