“We can’t shit our pants,” Deniz Undav had insisted, and Stuttgart didn’t, but they didn’t beat the most fearsome, seemingly indestructible team in Europe either. For if the striker was right when he said that “if you fear Real Madrid because it’s Real Madrid, you don’t even have to fly,” if he had his moment, with a head that promised an even more memorable night, and if his team had fought on their return to the Champions League fifteen years later, the result would have been the same. It’s one thing not to be overwhelmed, even to be outdone, but another to actually beat the club that calls this competition their own.

For a thoroughly enjoyable evening of 37 shots and wide open spaces, Stuttgart outplayed their illustrious opponents. Their coach Sebastian Hoeness described it as an “unforgettable” occasion, a “fascinating game with many chances” to which they “contributed”, and which showed “our courage and our football”. They went to the most emblematic arena of them all and went behind to Kylian Mbappé’s first European goal for Madrid. But Undav equalised with twenty minutes remaining, Stuttgart had gone in search of more and they might have got it.

But ultimately Real Madrid are, well, Real Madrid, and so it was that Antonio Rudiger tipped a header from a corner in their direction with seven minutes remaining. And with Stuttgart still firing everything at them, teenager Endrick ran free in injury time to finish it off, sealing a 3-1 home win.

“Thinking about winning may seem like an exaggeration, but we will be brave,” Hoeness had said, and he was right – on both counts. The game was barely two minutes old when Thibaut Courtois made the first of six saves, blocking Jamie Leweling’s shot. The effort was the culmination of a move that began at the feet of Stuttgart goalkeeper Alexander Nübel, cutting Madrid open on the right; it was also a statement of intent.

Stuttgart dominated those opening moments; after ten minutes, possession was 72% in their favour. After twenty minutes, it was 70%. It would be a close affair – the final figure was 54% – but Courtois had come to Madrid’s rescue three times already and would have to do so again. Enzo Millot sent a one-on-one wide, Leweling was denied, as was Millot, and a great exchange between Chris Fuhrrich and Undav left Angelo Stiller alone in front of goal, unable to finish a move he had started. Whistles from the stands spoke of Madrid’s frustrations. Except that this is what they do, a story that has been told before.

And the closest Stuttgart came was when the beast began to stir. A sprint from Vinícius Júnior, a burst from Mbappé and a run from Rodrygo all served as warning before Undav’s shot deflected off Aurélien. Tchouaméni and hit the crossbar. Half an hour had passed quickly; this was fun. Madrid were then awarded a penalty, but the referee was called to the VAR screen where, as Jude Bellingham waited on the spot, he saw that Stiller’s swipe had missed Rüdiger.

There was another opening for Millot, Courtois saved again and Bellingham’s ball that Mbappé could have cleared. Madrid were now certainly in it and although there were still no goals in the first half, it took just twenty seconds into the second half for one to come. A neat move took Rodrygo down the right and he set up Mbappé to leap with his foot into an open net for his 49th Champions League goal. It could have been 50 shortly afterwards. This time Nübel made the save.

Vinicius then hit the crossbar and it felt like the die was cast. And yet Stuttgart were not about to let this one slip, rightly confident of their ability to continue to break Madrid. Leweling forced two saves from Courtois in three minutes. He then sprinted free but failed to bend the final pass past Rudiger into space. He then squandered a glorious chance, fed by Atakan Karazor.

The frustration was palpable but quickly dissipated. From a corner kick by Fabian Rieder, the ball found Leweling at the far post. He controlled it superbly on his chest and volleyed it back across the penalty area for Undav to head in the equaliser. Fortune favoured the brave, if only for a moment, as Rüdiger and Endrick put an end to their hopes. For Stuttgart, it had certainly been worth the flight, their coach proclaiming his pride in players who never gave up and their fans singing as the rest of this stadium emptied. They had enjoyed their return; some fates are inevitable, however.