Celta Vigo vs. Real Madrid: 2017 Spanish Copa del Rey Leg 2 Score, Reaction

Real Madrid's 2016-17 Copa del Rey campaign came to a close on Wednesday.

The 2-2 draw with Celta Vigo at the Estadio de Balaidos knocked Los Blancos out of the tournament at the quarter-final stage on aggregate, 4-3.

A Danilo own goal and a late strike from Daniel Wass were enough for the home side to advance, while Cristiano Ronaldo and Lucas Vazquez scored for Real.

As Dermot Corrigan of ESPN FC noted, it wasn't a pretty result for the Santiago Bernabeu side:

Gone also are the hopes of a treble, a real consideration after the team's fine start to the season, while the team's drought in the Copa del Rey tournament was extended, per Kick:

After a sluggish start to the match, Los Blancos came inches away from scoring in the 25th minute.

A cross into the box intended for Ronaldo instead appeared to hit off either the head or shoulder of Gustavo Cabral. Sergio Alvarez made a brilliant and frantic save on the ensuing deflection, tipping the ball off the crossbar, but it ricocheted to the right foot of the Portugal international.

The Real forward didn't have any time to aim his effort, however, and his side-footed redirection careened off the right post and away from the net.

Celta Vigo, in the span of a second, had been spared by the narrowest of margins twice. Per OptaJose, the close call has become a theme for Ronaldo this season:

Ten minutes later, a dreadful Casemiro turnover left Iago Aspas unmarked in the box. Rather than firing on goal after settling the ball, he attempted to square it for John Guidetti in the middle of the box. The weak pass was easily intercepted and cleared, however, and a golden opportunity was left wanting.

Moments later, Guidetti was through on goal after a long ball over top of the Real Madrid defense. His right-footed, near-post smash was parried out of play by a diving Kiko Casilla, and Los Blancos escaped again.

Real's luck ran out in the 43rd minute, however. Celta again struck on the counter, Guidetti again found himself alone in the box and Casilla again was up for the task, making a huge save. But the rebound struck Danilo before the defender could react and deflected into the empty net, giving the home side a 1-0 lead just before the half:

Corrigan didn't blame Danilo but rather the team's defending:

Aspas beat Nacho to a loose ball in the buildup, which ultimately set up the goal.

Real limped into the interval down in the tie, but a goal from Ronaldo in the 62nd minute gave them hope. His scintillating free-kick from 25 yards out beat Alvarez and left Los Blancos a goal away from forcing extra time.

"

Cristiano Ronaldo’s free-kick, though  pic.twitter.com/COlwS4rlVQ

— Bleacher Report UK (@br_uk) January 25, 2017"

It was Ronaldo's third free-kick goal of the year for Real but his first Copa del Rey goal since January 2015, per ESPN Stats & Info.

It wasn't enough, however, as Celta put the tie away in the 84th minute. A lovely bit of buildup play around the box set up Wass with plenty of room to shoot, and he didn't disappoint, calmly passing a low shot into the bottom-right corner.

Vazquez headed home for the visitors in the 90th minute, but Real couldn't muster a final goal to advance to the semi-finals.

For Los Blancos, that's two losses and two draws from their last five contests, a disappointing string of results for a team that still sit atop La Liga's table, albeit by just one point. Up next will be a matchup against Real Sociedad on Sunday.

Celta, meanwhile, are off to the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey. Up next in La Liga will be a matchup against Leganes on Saturday.

Post-Match Reaction

Lalo R. Villar/Associated Press

After the contest, Celta Vigo manager Eduardo Berizzo was thrilled with his charges.

"At first the nervousness played against us, but in the end, everything played in our favor," he noted, per soccer writer Juan G. Arango, before adding: "I don't want to take away with my words what the players did today. They won this match tonight."

It was, indeed, a special effort.

On the Real Madrid side, manager Zinedine Zidane tried to stay positive.

"We will keep going, but I think that playing like this, in this way, with character and personality we will keep moving forward," he said, per Corrigan, before adding: "We played a great game. Then we are out and disappointed, after what all the lads did."

He acknowledged that the team wasn't quite playing up to its potential, however.

While nobody expected Real to be perfect this year, losing at this point in the Copa del Rey is a bitter disappointment. And if Los Blancos don't identify and correct the root of their current issues—certainly, getting some key players healthy will help—the rest of La Liga will catch up quickly.

When teams such as Barcelona and Atletico Madrid are chasing you, there is never much margin for error.