Legia Warsaw vs Real Madrid: Kovacic rescues champions

Real Madrid avoided an embarrassing defeat in Warsaw after the Spanish club let a two-goal lead slip before needing a late equaliser to hold Legia to a 3-3 draw in an exciting Champions League Group F game.

The draw means Real Madrid still haven't confirmed their place in the next round, even if it looks like a foregone conclusion, with the defending champions needing just a point to move into the last 16. Real, after the 3-3 result, lie second in the table, two points behind Dortmund, who are already through to the knockout rounds after their win over Sporting Lisbon.

Real Madrid might have been in a much trickier position if not for Mateo Kovacic, who has filled in for the injured Luka Modric quite well, with the Croatian scoring an 85^th minute leveller to save Real's blushes.

Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema's goals in the first half looked like making this match a comfortable one for Real, but Legia stunned their opponents through Vadis Odidja, Miroslav Radovic and Thibault Moulin.

However, Real Madrid, whose superstar forward Cristiano Ronaldo wasn't his usual effective self, found an equaliser through Kovacic to make sure they would not leave the Polish Army Stadium, played without a home crowd due to a ban for crowd trouble, empty-handed.

"It was a tough game because whenever you score two goals away from home, ordinarily it would be a game that you're in control of," Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane said. "Their first goal gave them a route back into the game. We lacked intensity, desire and movement.

"At times you can have these odd games and we've got to be patient. The good thing is that we didn't lose and we're now focusing on our next game."

Gareth Bale, who recently signed a lucrative new contract with Real Madrid, was happy with his contribution in the game – a goal and an assist for the Karim Benzema strike – but felt his team deserved more than just a point.

"There can be no excuses, we aren't happy with the result," Bale said. "We have to improve defensively and take our chances. It was a really fine strike (for the goal), but ultimately it didn't see us win the game and the important thing was to get the win.

"We should have killed the game off when we were in the lead, it's nothing to do with tactics. We need to improve our concentration because we've conceded a lot of silly goals. We have to analyse it and take away the positives."