Despite making his first start of the season, Andriy Lunin has revealed one reason why he is unhappy after Lille beat Real Madrid.
Last night in the UEFA Champions League, Real Madrid were on the receiving end of their first loss all season. In fact, Lille became the first team to beat Real Madrid in a competitive match since Atletico Madrid in January 2024.
Featuring in the match from the offset was Andriy Lunin. The Ukraine international was handed his first start of the 2024/25 campaign, admittedly afforded to him by Thibaut Courtois' injury.
Andriy Lunin failed to keep a clean sheet. However, he did play well in the match, with the only goal he conceded being from the penalty spot.
Andriy Lunin reveals why he is unhappy after Lille beat Real Madrid
Speaking after the game, Andriy Lunin was not shy to criticise his Real Madrid teammates. According to Mundo Deportivo, he hinted that a reason why Real Madrid lost was because they didn't want it hard enough.
In his own words (translated to English), Andriy Lunin said: “It’s difficult to analyse right after, but we lacked some aggression, creativity, fighting a bit more. In the second half, we had more desire, but in the first half, we were worse.”
Going a goal down inspired Real Madrid to fight a bit harder. However, it shouldn't have taken a conceded goal for Real Madrid to push for a win. They should've shown the same passion and fight in the first half that they did in the second, that way they might have won.
Regardless of the result, it was nice for Andriy Lunin to make his first start of the season. Unfortunately, it comes at Thibaut Courtois' expense. This is something Lunin touched upon.
Continuing, Lunin said: “Personally, I am happy to be back playing. On the other hand, I want to send encouragement to Courtois so that he can recover."
All in all, Andriy Lunin finds it hard to see the positives after last night's performance. He claimed that it is impossible for him to be happy, despite making his first start this season, due to losing.
Finally, Lunin added: “The most important thing was to win, but we didn’t manage to do that and I can’t be happy because we always want to win and it doesn’t matter who is on the pitch."
It is not Andriy Lunin's fault that Real Madrid conceded a goal, nor should he be blamed for the loss. Real Madrid are good enough to concede a goal without losing.
But, it does show the high standard at which Real Madrid are held at. It seems like hell has broken loose right now, but in reality, Real Madrid lost one game. The champions will fight again in game-week 3.