Champions League Round of 16 - 2018/19: 5 things that nobody expected to happen

#4 Ajax dumping Real Madrid out and causing a club crisis

Ajax's stunning win over Real Madrid triggered a club crisis - something nobody saw coming

While their form in the group stages – a pair of losses to CSKA Moscow blighted their record – it appeared to suggest things weren’t quite right at Real Madrid and nobody really expected them to be sent packing by Ajax in the Round of 16. After all, this was the same side – minus Cristiano Ronaldo of course – who had won the last 3 editions of the Champions League and who were arguably the best side to ever compete in Europe.

And yet across two dramatic legs, the impossible happened. Ajax were unfortunate to come away from the first leg at the Johan Cruyff Arena with a 1-2 loss, as the Dutch side appeared to be the better team and had a first-half goal chalked off due to VAR. But with two away goals in the bag for Real, the second leg felt like a formality. Sergio Ramos even took a tactical booking to rule him out of the second leg, allowing him to prepare for the Quarters.

It didn’t turn out to be the wisest decision. Inspired by an incredible performance from Dusan Tadic, Ajax simply destroyed Real on their own turf, as Los Blancos capitulated entirely, showing none of the steel they’d displayed so many times before in the Champions League. The game ended 1-4 and the tie 5-3 in favor of Ajax.

The result appeared to trigger a crisis inside Real – club President Florentino Perez reportedly had an angry confrontation with Ramos following the game, and less than a week later, boss Santiago Solari was fired and replaced by the man who walked away from the Bernabeu in the summer – Zinedine Zidane. In a competition full of unexpected events, this might’ve been the most unexpected of them all.