“I need to get home FAST. Neymar and Santos are playing” - Real Madrid star makes feelings clear on watching ex-Barcelona hero after win vs Man City

After helping Real Madrid beat Manchester City, Rodrygo claimed that watching former Barcelona star Neymar play for Santos is his priority. The Los Blancos forward featured in his side's convincing 3-1 win over City in the UEFA Champions League playoffs.

A product of the same Santos academy that produced Neymar, Rodrygo featured from the start for Real Madrid in their win over Manchester City. The 24-year-old star registered an assist in the game, setting up Kylian Mbappe to score his side's second goal of the game.

Rodrygo spoke with the press after the game at the Santiago Bernabeu, revealing that he was in a hurry to leave the stadium and head home. He wished for this to be able to catch Neymar in action with Santos in the Paulista A1.

“I need to get home FAST. Neymar and Santos are playing,” he was quoted as saying by Madrid Xtra.

Neymar and Santos made it a good night for the Real Madrid man, seeing as the Brazilian club claimed a 3-0 win over Noroeste. The former Barcelona man made his fifth appearance and fourth start for his boyhood club since his return in January. He played for 69 minutes before he was taken off for midfielder Thaciano as his side picked up three points.

Rodrygo made his professional bow for Santos, making 80 appearances for the club as a teenager and scoring 17 goals before moving to Real Madrid. The forward idolizes Neymar and has played alongside the former Barcelona man for the national team.

Real Madrid join Barcelona in Champions League Round of 16

Real Madrid have joined arch-rivals Barcelona in the Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League after a 6-3 aggregate win over Manchester City in the playoffs. Los Blancos won the second leg in front of their fans at the Santiago Bernabeu by a 3-1 scoreline to progress.

Kylian Mbappe opened the scoring for Carlo Ancelotti's side in the fourth minute, latching onto a long ball from Raul Asencio to score his side's first. The Frenchman added a second in the 33rd minute, finishing off a pass from Rodrygo to put his side in complete control.

Mbappe completed his hat-trick in the 61st minute, putting the game completely out of the reach of the English champions. Manchester City managed to pull one back in the dying moments through Nico Gonzalez.